Auction 61 - Rare and Important Items

Miniature Torah Scroll on Deer Parchment, in Original Case with Silver Ornamentations - Lebanon / Near East, 1904

Opening: $3,500
Sold for: $4,375
Including buyer's premium
A miniature Torah scroll, written on deer parchment, in the original decorated case. Lebanon, Syria or the surroundings (Near East), dedication from 1904.
Ink on parchment; wood; velvet; repouseé and engraved silver; silver filigree.
The scroll is written on very thin and stiff light brown-yellowish parchment, made of deer or gazelle skin processed in lime. Sephardic scribal script, typical of Syria or the vicinity in the 19th century. The scroll was written with "Vave Ha'amudim" [each column opens with a word starting with the letter "Vav"], in line with "Ezrat HaSofer" Tikun Sofrim. 42 lines per column.
The book is housed in the original wooden case covered with blue velvet. Strips of silver sheet, some decorated with a repetitive pattern, are attached with nails to the margins of the case. A dedication is engraved on the top strip: "This case and Torah for… Shlomo Reuven… 1904" (Hebrew). Cut and repouseé silver plaques and filigree plaques are attached to both parts of the case. Silver buckle. Interior of the case is covered with colorful fabric; base of the case is painted blue.
According to the owner, the scroll and the case originate in Lebanon (Lebanese Jews are considered one of the smallest Jewish communities in the Middle East).
Enclosed is a report by an expert in ancient Torah scrolls, about the location and date of writing.
Height of parchment: 20.5 cm. Height of case: 27 cm. Fair condition. Lacking section from the middle of Pinchas portion to the end of the Torah. Stains, tears and open tears to parchment, affecting text. Several detached or partly detached membranes. Velvet is very worn, unraveled, stained and detached from the case in several spots. The inner cloth cover is falling apart and lacking. One Etz Chaim is missing and the other is broken. Two of the silver plaques were cut at random from a larger plaque. Breaks, defects and bends to silver ornamentations. Loose nails.