Auction 91 Part 1 Jewish and Israeli History, Culture and Art
De Arte Cabalistica ["On the Art of Kabbalah"], by Johannes Reuchlin. Hagenau: Thomas Anshelm, 1517 (print details from colophon). Latin, with some Hebrew and Greek. First edition.
First edition of the seminal work on the subject of Kabbalah as understood from a Christian perspective, by the German scholar Johannes Reuchlin. The title page features a large woodcut of Reuchlin's coat of arms: a knight's helmet bearing the inscription "ARACAP / NIONIS" ("Ara Capnionis"). Decorative woodcut initial; two illustrations of mystical symbols appear in the margins of one of the pages.
In this book, Reuchlin develops ideas he first introduced in his previous work, "De Verbo Mirifico." It is written as a three-way conversation involving the Jewish kabbalist Simeon ben Elazar (a fictitious character whose name is meant to be reminiscent of Simeon Bar Yohai, who, according to Jewish tradition, was the author of the "Zohar, " the foundational book on Kabbalah), a Pythagorean philosopher, and a Muslim. In the spirit of the Renaissance, in the present book Reuchlin strives to return to "the basics" as he perceives them, namely Jewish Kabbalah and Pythagorean philosophy, whose origins he traces all the way back to Moses. He then takes these "basics" and interweaves them into Christian theology.
This book does not have a missionary agenda and was never in fact aimed at Jews; rather, Reuchlin directs his attention to his Christian co-religionists, attempting to familiarize them with the sources of their own religion and thus deepen their faith. The term "Kabbalah" here is not at all restricted to the mystical and esoteric aspects of the Jewish faith, but rather to Jewish sources in general; the approach adopted in the book derives broadly and indiscriminately from extra-Biblical Jewish traditions, in the belief that the Christian faith is rendered incomplete and poorer in the absence of exposure to these realms of Jewish thought, namely the Oral Torah (the Talmud and midrashic literature) and esoteric material that includes the Kabbalah, the "Zohar", the writings of Rabbi Yehuda HeHasid [Judah ben Samuel of Regensburg], Rabbi Abraham Abulafia, Rabbi Joseph ben Abraham Gikatilla, and others, and mystical letter combinations and "Gematria" (Hebrew numerology). This concept is founded on the belief that, like the Bible itself, all of the above were delivered to Moses at Mt. Sinai.
Johannes Reuchlin (1455-1522), among the most prominent of German humanist scholars in the Renaissance period. Outspoken proponent of an attitude of tolerance toward the Jews. Invested much of his energies in enriching his Christian co-religionists with the wisdom of Jewish sacred writings and Greek philosophy, and in teaching them the Hebrew and Greek languages. Studied Hebrew under Jakob ben Jehiel Loans and under Rabbi Ovadia ben Jacob Sforno of Cesena. Continued with advanced studies in Kabbalah in Italy, and was influenced by the writings of the Italian philosopher Giovanni Pico della Mirandola (1463-1494). Reuchlin was considered to be among the fathers of the Reformation, even though he personally placed himself in opposition to that movement, and remained steadfast in his loyalty to Catholicism and the Vatican throughout his life.
In the famous debate that erupted between him and the German Catholic theologian and convert from Judaism, Johannes (Josef) Pfefferkorn, Reuchlin emphatically denounced the burning of the Talmud. Consequently, and because of his insistence on the need to study and teach the Jewish religious texts, he found himself targeted by the Church's institutions. His pamphlet titled "Augenspiegel" ("Eyeglasses") was banned and condemned by force of an official decree issued by Pope Leo X on June 23, 1520.
[4], LXXIX, [1] ff. (misfoliation), 28.5 cm. Good condition. Stains, including dampstains, and several ink stains, some dark. Closed and open tears to edges of title page and several other leaves, some mended with paper. Minute worming to title page and several other leaves, with minor damage to text. Hand signature on title page. Modern vellum boards.
For additional reading, see: Joseph Dan, "The Kabbalah of Johannes Reuchlin and its Historical Significance, " in: Aviezer Ravitzky, ed., "Jerusalem Studies in Jewish Thought, Joseph Baruch Sermoneta Memorial Volume, " Mandel Institute for Jewish Studies, Jerusalem, 1998, pp. 455-85.
Printer's device on title page. Ornate initials.
[39] ff. Missing last, blank leaf. 12.5 cm. Good condition. Stains. Minor creases. Top edge trimmed at a slant. Fine binding (paper over parchment). Photocopy of title page mounted to front board.
Catálogo de incunables y obras impresas del Siglo XVI (Madrid, 2002), no. 241.
Four parts of a pocket size edition of the Bible, in Latin. Paris: Simon de Colines, 1529-1532. Three volumes.
In 1524-1526, the Parisian printer Simon de Colines published a sexto-decimo edition of the Bible in seven or eight parts. All parts were reprinted over the next fifteen years. This lot comprises four of the reprints:
• Part I (printing completed in December 1532): The Pentateuch, Joshua, Judges and Ruth.
[8], 439 ff.
• Part II (printing completed in May 1529) – Samuel, Kings, Chronicles, Ezra, Tobias, Judith, Esther, Job. Text within red-ruled frame.
[5], 587 ff.
• Part V (1513) – "Libri Prophetarum": Isaiah, Jeremiah, Baruch, Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Zechariah and Malachi. Bound with Part VI – 1 and 2 Maccabees.
436 ff.; 100 ff.
Woodcut initials.
Approx. 10.5-11.5 cm. Overall good condition. Stains, including dampstains. Large dark stains to title pages. Creases and minor wear. Worming to most leaves of Part I and to some leaves in other volumes, with minor damage to text. Large, blue inked-stamps on several pages. Minor repair to title page of Part V. Marking to f. 486 of Part II. New, matching leather bindings, with remnants of the original, gilt-decorated leather bindings. Edges painted black.
See: Darlow & Moule, Historical catalogue of the printed editions of Holy Scripture in the library of the British and Foreign Bible Society, Vol. II, note following 6105.
Sententiae hebraicae ad vitae institutionem perutiles / Schöne vnnd heilsame Hebraische Sprüch, a collection of Hebrew proverbs, with translation to Latin and German, by Paulus Weidner von Billerburg. Vienna: Michael Zimmermann, 1563.
A collection of proverbs, mainly from Pirkey Avot, in Hebrew, Latin and German, with commentary. The proverbs were compiled and translated by Paulus Weidner (né Asher Judah Ashkenazi; ca. 1525-1585), a Jewish convert to Christianity, doctor and professor of Hebrew at the University of Vienna.
A woodcut portrait of Weidner appears on verso of title page.
[112] ff., approx. 20 cm. Good condition. Stains, including dampstains. Minor tears to endpapers and to leaf [111]. Notation on title page. Ex-library copy: Inked stamps to inside front board and several pages; notation on spine. Limp vellum binding, with four ties (three ties are torn; only a small part remains). Minor wear to binding.
43 works by Philo of Alexandria, translated from Greek by Sigmund Gelen, with four introductions. Woodcut initial at the beginning of each work. Two additional works at the end, one by Athenagoras of Athens and one by Aeneas of Gaza.
[4] ff., 720, [28] pp., 31 cm. Good condition. Stains, including dampstains. Some leaves browned. Worming to some leaves (with minor damage to text). Markings and notations by hand to title page and several other leaves. Open tear to title page (from ink erosion), damaging several words. Worn and damaged binding (with tears). New strip of leather to spine, for reinforcement.
French scholar and priest Samuel Buchart's (1599-1667) notable work, in which he attempts to identify biblical animals based on a variety of ancient sources: The Holy Scriptures, Near Eastern literature and Greek and Latin sources. First edition, with four in-text illustrations of animals and a portrait of the author.
Part I: [48] ff., 1094 columns, [64] pp. + [1] plate (portrait of the author); Part II: [4] ff. (bound out of order, at the end of the book), 888 columns, [56] pp. Approx. 37 cm. Good condition. Minor blemishes. Label, inked stamp and handwritten notation on inside boards and a blank leaf at the beginning. Fine parchment binding, with title handwritten on spine; worn.
1. Historische Nachrichten von der Juden-Gemeinde welche ehehin in der Reichsstadt Nürnberg. Nuremberg: Georg Peter Monath, 1755. German, Latin and some Hebrew.
History of the Jews of Nuremberg. Fine engraved frontispiece showing the Nuremberg synagogue and six figures, each in distinct medieval Jewish costume.
[3] ff., 164 pp. + [1] engraved plate.
2. Historische Nachricht von der Judengemeinde in dem Hofmarkt Fürth unterhalb Nürnberg. Frankfurt and Prague, 1754. German and some Hebrew. Two parts.
History of the Jews of Fürth.
[2] ff., 170 pp.
Bound together. 19.5 cm. Good-fair condition. Stains and creases (mostly minor). Inked stamps, including library stamps, and handwriting on several leaves. Binding and several leaves partrially detached. Some worming, with minor damage to text. Old binding, worn; cloth tape along spine.
Lot 193 Netivot HaShalom – Moses Mendelssohn's Commentary on the Torah – First Edition, Berlin, 1783
Sefer Netivot HaShalom, the Five Books of Moses with scribal corrections, German translation and commentary [by Moses Mendelssohn, Solomon Dubno, Hartwig Wessely, Herz Homberg and Aaron Friedenthal]. Berlin: George Friedrich Starcke, 1783. Hebrew and German in Hebrew characters.
A rare copy of the first edition of Mendelssohn's Bi'ur – the Pentateuch, translated into German and presented with a new commentary, seen as the stellar achievement of the Haskalah movement.
The work was composed by a group of scholars, headed by Mendelssohn, over ten years, between 1773 and 1783, and was fiercely opposed by the rabbinic leadership, who went as far as trying to prevent its printing. To finance the enterprise, estimated at 3,500 thalers, Mendelssohn and his partners assembled a group of subscribers from all over Europe who jointly funded the publishing of the 750 copies comprising the first edition.
The present first edition copy consists of five volumes, each book of the Pentateuch bound separately; Genesis and Exodus each with a separate title page. Genesis volume bound with Mendelssohn's introductory work "Or LiNetivah"; Rabbinical endorsements; and "Mahalal Re'a", Hartwig Wessely's introductory poem. Lacking engraved title page, two additional title pages from the Genesis volume and a two-page introduction by Solomon Dubno.
All five volumes with inscriptions on flyleaves, dedicating the books to the owner's grandson: "A gift… to my grandson Michl son of Hirsch… Amsterdam, Kislev 1815, Gotschlich” (with minor variations between volumes).
Genesis: [1], [23], 6; [1], 299 ff. (lacking ff. 7-8 of first pagination sequence – introduction by Solomon Dubno, two title pages and the engraved title page bound into some of the copies). Exodus: [1], 204 ff. Leviticus: [2], 218 ff. Numbers: 144 ff. Deuteronomy: 125, [1] ff., approx. 20 cm. Good-fair condition. Stains. Worming (mostly to margins), minimally affecting text. Some pages partly detached. Original covers, worn and partly detached, with closed and open tears to spines.
1. The Lost Tribes of Israel in England and America, by E. K. Tullidge. New York, 1881.
64 pp., 20.5 cm. Front wrapper detached, with marginal tears.
2. The Ten Tribes of Israel, or the true history of the North American Indians, showing that they are the descendants of these ten tribes. Springfield, Ohio, 1885.
IV, 323 pp., 21.5 cm.
Condition varies.