Chemdath Yamim [commentary to the Pentateuch]

SHABAZI, SHALOM

Yemen

17th-century

Hebrew manuscript written in brown ink on paper in a Yemenite square script. Few simple diagrams. Extensive marginalia. The David Solomon Sassoon copy. See D.S. Sassoon, Ohel Dawid: Catalogue of the Sassoon Library (1932) Vol. I p. 84-5, no. 345.

An important Kabbalistic commentary to the Chumash in the form of a Midrash., Citing many authorities, it was published only in a later abridgment (Jerus. 1883-5). See S. Liebermann, Yemenite Midrashim (Jerus. 1970) pp. 32-9; G. Scholem, Kabbalah (1974) p. 82. R. Shalom Shabazi (1619-c.1720) is undoubtedly Yemenite Jewry’s greatest rabbinic figure. His leadership was instrumental in helping the Jews of Yemen survive severe persecution, while his literary prowess was such that he is regarded as one of the most prized of Jewish poets. His grave in Ta’izz, in the Yemeni Highlands, above the famous port of Mocha on the Red Sea, is revered by Jews and Muslims alike. Provenance: Sotheby’s New York, Hebrew Manuscripts from the Collection of the Late David Solomon Sassoon, 12th May, 1981, Lot 90.