CALIFARA, ISRAEL SAMUEL

RARE COMPLETE COPY WITH THE FULL TEXT OF THE SIDDUR. The author, R. Yisrael Califara was a noted Gaon, serving as both the physician and Dayan of Cracow in the time of R. Moshe Isserles (the Rama). This work was originally published in three sections with different title pages. The first section (extremely rare and usually missing in most copies) contains lengthy approbations (including a poem by the author’s father in law R. Abraham Gumbiner, the celebrated author of Magen Abraham on Shulchan Aruch), an introduction and an unvocalized Siddur similar to the one found at the end of Sifthei Yeshanim by Shabbethai Bass (see Lot 42). The other two parts contain the ingenious alphabetic text by Califara and the commentary by Kaufman Katz. In subsequent editions Califara’s name was deleted and the publisher substituted the name of the Megaleh Amukoth in large letters on every page. See C.N. Dembitzer, Kelilath Yofi,Vol. I (1888) p. 23; and E. Katzman, Toldoth HaMegaleh Amukoth (2003) pp.16-7