Tikun Erev Rosh Chodesh Be’chadshoh [selected prayers for the Eve of the New Month and Yom Kippur Katan]

AUCTION 19 | Tuesday, March 11th, 2003 at 1:00

Fine Judaica: Printed Books, Manuscripts and Works of Graphic Art

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Lot 222

(LITURGY)

Tikun Erev Rosh Chodesh Be’chadshoh [selected prayers for the Eve of the New Month and Yom Kippur Katan]

MANUSCRIPT ON VELLUM, written and illustrated by Nathan b. Samson of Mehzeritch. Commissioned by Eliezer b. Joseph of Dusseldorf. Text in square Aschkenazi script with Nikud. Letters in the Amsterdam style. Black ink. Up to sixteen lines of text to the page. Illustrated architectural title page with four marbled panels flanking title text. Top panel contains a baroque sheild within which is inscribed the ownership dedication. Lower panel contains a roccoco vignette within which the artist signed his name and gives the date. The illustrations of Moses and Aaron which flank the title, are based on Abraham b. Jacob’s copper engravings for the Amsterdam Hagadah (1695). All accomplished in vibrant sepia shades; text in brown and black inks. Opening words of each prayer variously decorated in colored sepia, gold and brown ink filigree designes. Geometric end-piece filigree rondelle. ff. (18). Exquisite contemporary gilt-tooled crimson calf, closed floral corner piece tools with central diamond form foliate arabesque vignette, scattered stellar form gilt-tools, spine gilt, gilt extras, gently rubbed at corners, gilded Dutch end-papers. Sm. 8vo

(Rotterdam)?: 1728

Est: $30,000 - $40,000

PRICE REALIZED $52,000

A FINE EXAMPLE OF 18TH CENTURY JEWISH ART, WITH PARTICULARLY WELL EXECUTED ILLUSTRATIONS AND CALLIGRAPHY. Three other manuscripts of Tikun Erev Rosh Chodesh by Nathan b. Samson of Mehzeritch are recorded: (i) Library of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America, New York (JTS 4432C), his earliest dated manuscript, dated 1723; (ii) Library of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America, New York (MIC. 4433f), accomplished in Rotterdam for Kossman Segal of Leinz; (iii) Bibliotheca Rosenthaliana, Amsterdam (HS. ROS. 683), accomplished in 1730. It is known that Nathan b. Samson of Mehzeritch stayed in Rotterdam in 1728 to execute a Hagadah (now in the Jewish Museum, Prague); as well as the version of Tikun Erev Rosh Chodesh noted above.