Tiph’ereth Yisrael / Megilath Sepher / Ma’amar Se’udath Mitzvah [“The Glory of Israel”: Six sermons on the seven wisdoms; “The Scroll of the Book”: Commentary to Scroll of Esther; “Banquet Sermon”]

DURAN, SOLOMON BEN TZEMACH

Daniel Zanetti

Venice

1591

FIRST EDITION. Title within highly wrought typographical border

Vinograd, Venice 768; Adams

The highly wrought title-page was a hallmark of the Zanetti family of printers. Rabbi Solomon Duran of Algiers was a descendant of R. Simon ben Tzemach Duran (Tashbe”tz) and his son R. Solomon ben Simon Duran (Rashba”sh). See JE, Vol. V, p.18 (includes Duran Family Tree). In reality, despite what is stated on the title, our entire volume revolves around the Scroll of Esther and the Feast of Purim. In Megilath Sepher, Duran delves into the halachic problematic of Esther’s marriage to Ahasuerus, while at the same time married to her uncle Mordecai (ff. 106, 122). On f.118r. Duran cites from a Judeo-Arabic commentary to Esther, which - so he was told by his father - was authored by R. Maimon, father of Maimonides