Tevuoth Schor [summary, with commenary to the Tur and Beth Joseph]

SCHOR, EPHRAIM ZALMAN.

Tzvi ben Abraham Kalonymus Jaffe

Lublin

1615-16

FIRST EDITION. Four parts with four separate title-pages.

Vinograd, Lublin 104; C.B. Friedberg, Toldoth Mishpachath Schor (Frankfurt a/Main, 1901) pp. 9-13

Most scarce - a great many Lublin imprints from this period were destroyed during the course of the Chmielnicki Massacres of 1648-49. The extreme rarity of the Tevuoth Schor can be ascertained by the fact that Ben Yaakov could not locate a copy with the first title page - indeed he remained unclear as to the exact date of printing (see Ben Yaakov,"Taf", no.11). The present copy contains all four titles along with an additional final leaf of corrections not noted by Vinograd or Steinschneider (Cat. Bod. 4904). The author (d.1633) was the Rosh Beth Din of Brisk, and was also Rabbi of Horodna and Lublin. He was also the son-in-law of Saul Wahl (the legendary king for a day of Poland) - the back-story to which is as follows: Saul Wahl's beautiful and talented daughter Henele refused a proposal to marry the young R. Heschel (later Rabbi of Cracow) as she felt she was destined for a greater scholar. At that time, the consort of the king of Poland died and Wahl’s daughter was brought to the attention of the palace as a possible match for the king. Horrified by the prospect, Wahl saw the immediate urgency to have Henele wed and R. Ephraim Zalman Schor - who at the time was a 70-year old widower - was implored to immediately marry the young lady before the king's messengers arrived at Brisk to spirit away the young Henele - (who also affirmed that R. Ephraim Zalman’s scholarship was of a level befitting her status). Note: This work should not be confused with “Simlah Chadashah” with the commentary Tevuoth Schor on Hilchoth Schechitah and Treifoth by Alexander Sender Schor (d. 1737)