Guest post: My great-grandfather's chumash and siddur with piyutim

My great-grandfather's chumash and siddur with piyutim

By David Roth, in collaboration with Gabriel Wasserman

I'm pleased to present this wonderful guest post by David Roth. I enjoyed it very much, and hope you do as well! - S.

I.        Introduction

This paper will be a description of my great-grandfather's chumash/siddur, which was printed in early twentieth-century England. The book is interesting, because it contains the full yotzer piyutim for the shabbosos of the year, and thus is evidence that the Ashkenazic Jews in England at the time were reciting these piyutim.  This practice is not well documented, so evidence of this sort is valuable. This paper should be a contribution to the study of the question of where and when piyutim were dropped in various communities in the modern period, not only in England, but in the Ashkenazic world as a whole.  The paper will also describe various features of the book, relating to the regular liturgy and to the chumash that the book contains.

I found this book in my grandparents' basement, in Potomac, MD.  My grandmother inherited it from her father, Henry Minden, who was born in Hamburg in 1890, lived in Hull, England from 1894-1904, then returned with his parents to Hamburg, where he remained until 1938.  At that point, he moved with his family to Golders Green, where he was an early member of the Golders Green Beth Hamedrash (GGBH/Munk's).  The inside cover of the bereishis volume of the chumash contains a note that it was purchased from Martin Sulzbacher.  My grandmother explained that when the family arrived in England at the end on 1938, they had virtually no seforim or other posessions, and she remembers that Mr. Sulzbacher was a used seforim dealer in the neighborhood, meaning that this chumash and siddur with piyutim was probably purchased from him around 1938 or 1939.  The book was already used, and there are remnants of an earlier name plate which seems to have been intentionally removed.

The title page of the book bears the dates 1900, and it is called "Second Edition, carefully Revised and Corrected."  However, it is impossible that the volume as a whole was printed in 1900, for the prayer for the Royal Family does not bless Queen Victoria, but rather King Edward and his family, who took reign only on January 22, 1901.  Most likely, the date 1900 reflects an earlier edition, which the printers neglected to update.[1]  It does not necessarily reflect the liturgical practices of most British Jewry in 1938, although as we shall see below, it would have been useful to my great-grandfather in GGBH.

These are the title pages in both Hebrew and English in the Vayikro volume.  Notice the Sephardic spelling of לונדון, which shows that the Ashkenazi community in London had been influenced by the Sephardic community which had been there before them.[2]

II.     Background about Ashkenzic minhogim regarding the recitation of piyutim

Since at least the 13^th century, the Ashkenazic prayer rite has been split between two major minhag families – Eastern (also known as מנהג פולין)[3] and Western (also known as מנהג אשכנז (המערבי)).  While there are minor differences in nusach ha'keva (the non-piyutim, regular prayers of the year), the major differences are regarding piyutim.  The traditional Ashkenazic communities recited piyutim not only on yomim noroim and selichos, but also on many occasions throughout the year, including special shabbosos and all yomim tovim.  The main types of piyutim include yotzer piyutim (in birchos kerias shema of shacharis), kerovos (in chazoras hashatz), and maarivim (in birchos kerias shema of maariv).[4]  In ashkenaz, kerovos were recited only on 4 parishios, shabbos hagodol and yom tov, as well as special weekdays such as Purim.[5]  On the other hand, yotzer piyutim were recited on many shabbosos throughout the year.  At some point in the nineteenth century, yotzer piyutim, and to a lesser extent maarivim, began to fall out of usage in many communities.  Kerovos fared a bit better, and indeed many communities today such Mesivta Tifereth Jerusalem (MTJ) of the Lower East Side, Manhattan; the synagogues affiliated with the Jewish Educational Center (JEC) in Elizabeth, New Jersey; the Hendon Adas in London; as well as many chasidic synagogues, recite kerovos today.[6]  It must be remembered that yotzer piyutim were recited on many more occasions than kerovos, and therefore dropping yotzer piyutim means dropping piyut for most shabbosos of the year.

A prominent Western Ashkenaz kehilloh is K'hal Adath Jeshurun (KAJ) in Washington Heights, where they recite all piyutim of all genres of the printed Western Ashkenazic rite.[7]  There are a few other Western Ashkenaz communities that recite all or most piyutim, mostly in Europe.  However, to the best of my knowledge, GGBH is the only Eastern Ashkenaz synagogue in the world which I know for sure recites yotzer piyutim throughout the year.[8]  My great-grandfather davened in GGBH from 1939 until the end of his life, in 1971.

III.   About my great-grandfather's chumash

My great-grandfather's chumash/siddur is a five-volume chumash, one sefer per volume, with English translations on facing pages.  The haftoros are printed after each parsha, according to both the Ashkenazic (called "German" in English) and Sephardic (called "Portuguese" in English) customs; however, it does not contain any megillos.  The second half of the volume is a shabbos siddur, with the following title: תפלות לשבתות עם היוצרות מראשית השנה ועד אחרית השנה.[9]  The English title of this section is simply "Sabbath Service".  The main part of the siddur contains an English translation, and the entire siddur, including piyutim, include English instructions. More about that later.

Just a few notes about the nusach of the siddur itself.  Every time kaddish is printed, it is preceded by the verses ועתה יגדל נא כח ד' כאשר דברת לאמר (Numbers 14,17) and זכר רחמיך ד' וחסדיך כי מעולם המה (Psalms 25,6), with instructions to recite these verses in an undertone.[10]  Following mincho on Friday afternoon, the following instruction appears "The Reader, in the repetition of the Ameedah, finishes at בשלום, and says Kaddish."  It is clear from this instruction that Oleinu was not recited because the services of kabbolos shabbos and maariv followed immediately after mincho.  Ba'me madlikin appears after kaddish tiskabal of maariv.  After ba'me madlikin appears an instruction to recite kiddush in shul.  After mincho of shabbos, there appears pirkei avos for the summer and borechi nafshi and shir ha'maalos (Psalms 104 and 120-134) for the winter.  None of these features is surprising, as they are all typical of old school Ashkenazic shuls, both Western and Eastern.[11]  Also, the book does not have מזמור שיר חנוכת הבית לדוד before boruch sh'omar; the minhag to recite this psalm is quite late, and it is not surprising that it does not appear here, although it is recited in GGBH, and I do not know what is done today in United Synagogue congregations.  Another interesting minhag regards shabbos mincho, "After the Torah is read, some Congregations say מזמור שיר ליום השבת till עולתה-בו, page 16, in the Evening Service."  This minhag is not so well known in America or Israel, but it appears to have been common in Eastern Ashkenaz shuls, I have seen it personally in GGBH, and I have heard that various shuls in New York, such as Ohab Zedek and Jewish Center, recite it.

In addition, the book contains some specifically British minhogim.  For example, the following instruction appears: "In most English Congregations the following Psalm and Hymns are said before ברוך שאמר."  This is referring to Shir shel Yom, Shir Ha'yichud, and Shir Ha'kovod (aanim zemiros), which are printed on the subsequent pages.[12]  Additionally, the Prayer for the Royal Family appears in the form הנותן תשועה, after yekum purkon and the mi she'beirach for the congregation; the figures named in it are "אדונינו המלך Our Sovereign Lord, King EDWARD, our Gracious Queen ALEXANDRA, GEORGE, Prince of WALES, the Princess of WALES, and all the ROYAL FAMILY, ירום הודם."[13]  According to Raphael Dascalu, the phrase "In most English Congregations … " indicates a community following the practices of the United Synagogue, and this brings us to the main point of our paper, that an apparently United Synagogue rite was reciting full piyutim throughout the year.  Any further information from readers about what community this book is associated with would be appreciated.

The Prayer for the Royal Family

Note that GGBH, where my great-grandfather davened, and which still recites most piyutim today, is not a member of the United Synagogue.  It does not affiliate with that organization; and moreover, the founders of the GGBH community arrived in England as refugees only in the late 1930s, almost seventy years after the founding of the United Synagogue.  It is quite possible (though by no means certain) that by the late 1930s, the United Synagogue communities were no longer saying yotzer piyutim; the practices of GGBH are primarily based not on pre-existing British practice, but on the customs of Hamburg and Berlin, which the refugees had taken with them from mainland Europe.  Nonetheless, both the old United Synagogue practices and those of Hamburg and Berlin were based on the traditional Eastern Ashkenazic Rite, and therefore would have been similar.[14]

IV.  The Piyutim contained in the Chumash/Siddur

Before we talk about the piyutim proper, we should mention a few passages that are added or substituted in the nusach ha'keva when piyutim are recited in birchos kerias shema of shacharis.  The main part of the siddur contains three passages to be added or substituted in birchos kerias shema.  The first is right after the opening of the berocho of yotzer or: אור עולם באוצר חיים אורות מאופל אמר ויהי.  The second replaces the passage v'ho'ofanim v'chayos ha'kodesh: והחיות ישוררו וכרבים יפארו ושרפים ירנו ואראלים יברכו פני כל חיה ואופן וכרוב לעמת שרפים לעמתם משבחים ואומרים.  The third replaces the paragraph al ho'rishonim: על הראשונים ועל האחרונים לעולם ועד חוק ולא יעבור אמת שאתה הוא ד' א-לוהינו וא-לוהי אבותינו לעולם ועד:  אתה הוא מלכנו מלך אבותינו אתה למען שמך מהר לגאלנו כאשר גאלת את אבותינו אמת מעולם שמך הגדול עלינו נקרא באהבה אין א-לוהים זולתך.[15]  There is also a fourth passage which is added to birchos kerias shema on some days when piyutim are added, namely בגלל אבות תושיע בנים ותביא גאלה לבני בניהם, however, this siddur prints this passage at the end of the relevant piyutim and not in the body of the siddur.

The piyutim themselves – yotzros for the year, as well as kerovos for 4 parshios and shabbos hagodol – are printed after musaf, before mincho, and they appear in the same size font as the rest of the sefer.[16]  Each volume contains only those piyutim that are relevant during the time of the reading of that sefer.[17]  There is no English translation for the piyutim, which is somewhat surprising, and this must have been an annoyance to British Jews, given the difficulty in understanding piyutim; however, the book includes detailed English instructions about the exact locations in the shabbos service for each relevant piyut.  These facts, namely that the piyutim are printed before mincho, that the books contains detailed instructions of where they are recited, and that they are printed in the same size as the rest of the sefer, seem to make it fairly clear that the congregations in England around this time were actually reciting these piyutim; the editors did not simply include them for cosmetic or reference reasons.  This is interesting, because today, United Synagogue congregations barely recite piyutim at all, and certainly not Yotzer piyutim.  I would appreciate any information from readers who might know when Yotzer piyutim fell out of use in United Synagogue congregations.

Note the instructions for where in the service to recite each piyut.  Also note the Livorno typeface, which is further evidence of Sephardic influence on the Ashkenazi community.

There are a few weeks on which different Eastern Ashkenazic communities recited different piyutim for the same occasion.  In these cases, many nineteenth to twentieth century siddurim, such as Avodas Yisroel (Eastern), published by Seligman Baer, and Otzar Ha'tefilos, published by the Vilna Romm printing press, indicate both variants.  This siddur indicates only one in each case.  This is valuable evidence for what was practiced in England at the time.  These are:

Guf yotzer[18] for Shabbos Hagodol: אאמיר מסתתר (and not אתי מלבנון, the other variant).

Ofan[19] for the first Shabbos after Pesach: ארוגי עוז (and not אראלים וחשמלים, the other variant).

Ofan for the second Shabbos after Pesach: יחיד ערץ (whereas some other Eastern Ashkenazic congregations recited no ofan this week).

Note that Baer's siddur indicates ארוגי עוז as the general Eastern Ashkenazic custom (perhaps meaning the Polish lands), and אראלים וחשמלים as "Behm and Bruenn" (that is, Bohemia and Brno, the region later known as "Oberland" – Austria, Western Hungary, and Czech lands).  On the other hand, he indicates יחיד ערץ as specifically the rite of Behm and Bruenn.  GGBH recites the two ofanim as indicated in this book, however they say אתי מלבנון as the guf yotzer for shabbos hagodol.  My great-grandfather would have had trouble following on this shabbos, although perhaps he just said the "wrong" one, since anyway it would have been recited almost entirely silently.

Another feature worth noting is the inclusion of the piyutim of the genre of ahavo[20] on various shabbosos over the course of the year.  This would be unremarkable, since all printings of Eastern Ashkenazi piyutim include them; however, we must note it here, because GGBH does not recite ahavos, and it seems from their minhogim book that they never did.  It is unclear if any synagogue in the world recites these piyutim today, any information from readers would be appreciated.[21]

V.     Conclusion

In conclusion, this volume opens up a window into the practices of the British Ashkenazic synagogues of the early twentieth century.  In this paper, we have seen that the practice of reciting piyutim, which is so commonly disregarded today, was still being followed.  The book does not even contain a note that some congregations omit or some congregations recite; rather it is simply assumed that piyutim are recited.  We hope that the worshippers of the time saw the beauty of these piyutim, and that the piyutim enhanced their prayer experience.

Appendix: Unusual candle lighting times

I'm not quite sure what's going on with these candle lighting times, which appear for a couple weeks of each year (note: this is the page in the vayikro volume, so it is not meant to contain the whole year, but I can't find any rhyme and reason even for which weeks it does or does not include).  However, see the post at http://onthemainline.blogspot.com/2009/06/what-time-is-shabbos-in-1842.html.  Also, note that all of these candle lighting times listed are only for before this sefer is printed.  Furthermore, the latest candle lighting time for the entire year is 7 o'clock, but plag ha'mincho (the earliest time to light candles for shabbos) in London gets as late as 7:39, so it appears that they were using a different time system than is currently in place.  Of course, the lack of daylight saving time could account for that discrepancy.

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[1] In reality, this book could not really be the second edition, but rather a later edition, nor could it really have been printed as a whole in 1900.  According to the catalog entry at worldcat.org, there was a "second edition" of this book printed in 1867, as well as in 1893, such that the 1900 edition must be at least the fourth edition, meaning that our book, which in truth must have been printed between 1901 and 1910 (as we can see from the Prayer for the Royal Family), must be at least the fifth edition.  As another suggestion, it is possible that the printing of the book actually began in 1900, and continued passed the accession of King Edward to the throne in January 1901.  This would mean that the title page was printed before the rest of the book, which seems unlikely.  Moreover, we know that the claim on the title page that this is the second edition is inaccurate, so the possibility that there could be other inaccuracies on the title page should not be surprising.  The fact that the candle lighting times in the book (see appendix) begins with 1879 further complicates the picture of when the book was printed, as the candle lighting times have clearly been updated since the first appearance of the "Second Edition" in (at latest) 1867, but they are not up to date in our edition.

[2] See Y. Prager, "The early years of London’s Ashkenazi community" in Yerusaseinu 5 (2011), page 8, footnote 23.  The spelling I would have expected in an Ashkenazic publication such as this would be לאנדאן.

[3] See J. and A. Fraenkel, "Prayer and Piyyut in the Mahzor Nuremberg" (Hebrew) 2008, (here), pp. 6-8.  (To be published in an expanded version in English in the forthcoming volume on Machzor Nuremberg.)  Note that various communities in northern Germany, including Hamburg – where my great-grandfather was from – followed the Eastern minhag; see D. Goldschmidt, Machzor for Rosh Hashanah (Hebrew), Introduction page xiv (יד).

[4]  In Ashkenaz, maarivim were recited only on yom tov.  The book discussed here is a siddur, not a machzor, so it does not include any yom tov liturgy; therefore we will not address maarivim here.

[5] This describes the situation in Ashkenaz.  In other regions, the recitation of kerovos was not limited to these occasions.  In fact, the Cairo geniza, reflecting the prayer traditions of Eretz Yisroel of over a thousand years ago, contains kerovos for every shabbos of the year, and ever for weekdays such as Tu B'shvat.

[6] Tragically, many communities in the 20^th century, probably only in the second half, have dropped kerovos for regolim, and say only 4 parshios, shabbos hagodol and yomim noroim.  The origin of the practice is unclear, but it is probably a result of not having machzorim, whereas the kerovos for 4 parshios have been printed in siddurim in recent centuries.

[7] There are a very few piyutim printed in the Western machzorim that KAJ does not say, but these exceptions are negligible.  (In all cases, these were piyutim that were already not said in Frankfurt.)

[8] I have heard rumors of synagogues in Vienna; Budapest; Sydney, Australia; Kiryat Sefer; Stamford Hill (London); and Monsey, which recite yotzer piyutim, although I have not substantiated these, and I do not know how consistently they recite them.  Any information about any of these places, or other synagogues, would be much appreciated.

[9] The word תפלה or תפלות was, and in some cases still is, used as the word for a siddur in many Ashkenazic communities.  The subtitle of the siddur מראשית השנה ועד אחרית השנה is based on Deuteronomy 11,12, although the text there reads ועד אחרית שנה, without the hey.

[10] This is true even before shemone esrei of maariv and borechu of shacharis, even though at these times there is a potential issue of hefsek.

[11] The non-recitation of Oleinu in Friday mincho has become increasingly scarce over the course of time, even GGBH today says Oleinu, apparently because of a maase sh'hoyo in the mid-twentieth century, involving a person who got extremely angry that he would not be able to recite kaddish following mincho, so he ran out of the shul and slammed the door on his fingers, severely injuring himself.  After that, R' Eli Munk, who was the Rabbi of GGBH at the time, suggested that they should start saying Oleinu in mincho in order that people should not get so upset and come to injure themselves.  I have seen the non-recitation of Oleinu myself only in KAJ Washington Heights, Shaare Hatikvah Washington Heights, Erlau in Katamon, Jerusalem, and IGB Basel.

[12]  As noted below, GGBH does not follow United Synagogue practices, rather they recite only shir ha'yichud at this point (or rather, before מזמור שיר חנכת הבית לדוד, which does not appear in our book), shir shel yom is said on shabbos and yom tov before the Torah is taken out, and shir ha'kovod is recited at the end of the services, following Oleinu.

[13] Note that this constellation of the Royal Family reflects the situation between Queen Victoria's death on January 22, 1901 and King Edward VII's death on May 6, 1910.

[14] I have heard, although I have not been able to substantiate, that the founders of GGBH wanted to follow the Eastern Ashkenazic rite as opposed to the Western, so that they would fit in with British Jewry and not stick out as German immigrants, at a time when the United Kingdom was in a state of hostility towards Germany.

[15] Note that Western Ashkenaz also substitutes a variant version of the previous paragraph, emes v'yatziv.  Although this is practiced today in KAJ and Shaare Hatikvah in Washington Heights, as well as in other Western Ashkenazic congregations, it is not relevant to England, GGBH, or this siddur, which are all Eastern Ashkenazic.

[16] No piyutim for yom tov, shabbos chol hamoed or Purim are included.  This makes sense because the first half of the book is a chumash, which one would not be using on these days, especially since it does not include megillos.  This surely does not mean that piyutim were not recited on yomim tovim; they would have been recited out of machzorim, not a siddur/chumash.

[17] Every volume begins with the piyutim for a shabbos bris and for shabbos rosh chodesh (because they can occur during the reading of any sefer of the Torah), and then continues with the piyutim relevant during the time of the reading of that sefer.  There is sometimes overlap; for example, the shemos volume has piyutim for all of 4 parshios through hachodesh, since in a non-leap year, the shabbos on which vayakehiel-pekudei is read is often hachodesh; but the vayikro volume begins again with the piyutim for hafsoko rishono, since in a leap year, the shabbos on which parshas vayikro is read sometimes the first hafsoko shabbos.

[18] A guf yotzer is the first yotzer piyyut of a sequence, recited right after אור עולם באוצר חיים.

[19] An ofan is a piyut recited after the verse קדוש קדוש קדוש in birchos kerias shema.

[20] An ahavo is a piyut recited close to the end of the berocho of ahavo rabboh.

[21] The Western Ashkenazic liturgy includes one ahavo [אותך כל היום קוינו].  It is recited twice a year, on the shabbos before shavuos and the shabbos before tisha b'av.  It is still recited today in KAJ Washington Heights, and a few other communities.  However, this is not relevant to the discussion of the Eastern rite, as that piyut is exclusively Western.

A beautiful translation of a Gordon poem; a guest post

I would like to post this wonderful free translation of the first part of Yehuda Leib Gordon's 1875 poem Kotzo Shel Yud. This was originally posted by my talented friend הערשי at Kave Shtiebel, and he gave me permission to post it here:

Jewish wife, who shall know your life?

It comes in the dark, and leaves no mark

Your joys and your anguishes, your hopes and your wishes

In your heart born, and in your heart worn

The world and all the pleasure

For others to treasure

The life of the Jewess a perpetual grind

Forever in her house confined

Bear, deliver, rear, and litter

Bake, and make, and wither

So what if you’re blessed, beauty you possessed

A heart refined, a keen mind

Study is bane, beauty vain

Talent a defect, knowledge abject

Your voice is crude, your hair lewd

You are naught, a goatskin filled with blood and rot

The Serpent’s pest, in you rests

Like the infected, by your own kin rejected

From scholarship, and from the house of worship

In the houses of merriment, you but lament

Good you don't master, the tongue of you ancestor

Thus you are barred, from the Lord’s yard

And you don't hear, the blessing the jeer

“Lord we bless, for not creating us a lass”

Like the heathen and the slave you are rated

Like a hen to breed fated

A heifer threshes, milk gives the cow

What use is it with knowledge to endow?

Why waste time you to rear

Those who follow your counsel in hell will sear

Not only has God closed your womb

Took your husband in your bloom

The cream of your days you while through

But you await your husband’s brother to pull his shoe

On your fathers bed you most grieved

From his inheritance nothing received

They deprive you not only the material

But keep from you the ministerial

For themselves commandments two forty eight

Only three for poor you, said the cheapskate

You are miserable so, Jewess!

You crave to know, to live, but alas

God’s sprout, wilting in drought

Not by sun rays dry, but away from the eye

Fertile soil, bearing luscious fruit with toil

For want of plow, grows weed now

Ere you matured into a conscious soul

You were thrust into a motherly role

Before they taught her, to be a daughter

She married, and her own children carried

Wed him, have you even met him?

Love him, aye; have you cast an eye?

You’re loved, what? Wretched, you know not

Love is apart, from the Jewish heart?

Forty days before, her mother bore

Her match-maker, destined her taker

What good will it do, to take a view

What will it add, to see the lad?

What’s love? Our mothers knew not

We shall not put off, our sister a slut

Head furled, face shrouded in veil

Hair curled, to the razor avail

Why have you eyed, who stands by your side

Whether crippled or bald, whether young or old

It’s all to the same use, you don’t get to choose

Your father will accord, he is your lord

Like chattel sold, from hold to hold

Are they like Aramites to inquire, after the girl’s desire?

As a maiden, your father is your warden

Your husband you please, under his auspices.

Your husband knows no art, he is not skilled

Never planted a vineyard, nor a house built

When the dowry is drawn

The family spawn

He sets looking for a trade

Dejected and dismayed

With options few, he has no clue

He runs away in the night, and leaves you chained in plight.

This is the story, of the Jewess’ glory.

The Recent Mesorah of NakhScroll Publication; a guest post by Gabriel Wasserman

Thank you, Gabriel, for a fascinating post! - S.

For several years now, I have been doing research on the phenomenon of the writing of the books of Nakh -- Nevi'im and Kethuvim -- by scribes, on kosher scrolls. This research started as a hobby, but it became clear, about two years ago, that eventually I would have enough material for a book. In a shameless bit of self-promotion, I mention here that I'm going to be speaking about the topic at the World Congress of Jewish Studies this summer, and you are all invited to attend. (The lecture will be in Hebrew; I believe that entry is free of charge.)

By way of background: Although the books of Scripture were written this way in ancient times (Qumran Scrolls, anybody?), and in Talmudic times (see Bava Bathra 13b ff.), the practice disappeared in later times, with the adoption of the codex, a form of book that is more convenient with regard to searching. (The one famous exception, of course, is the Book of Esther.) We have a fragment of a scroll of Melakhim from the 8th or 9th century, and then nothing, until Early Modern posqim start to express their anxieties about the fact that we're Doin' Things Wrong.

Finally, R. Elijah the Gaon of Vilna decided, in late 1782 or early 1783, that he was going to hire an army of scribes, to write out all of Tanakh. The festive siyyum was on 7 Adar, 1783 (the traditional yortzait of Moses), and was attended by Solomon Dubno, who wrote up a whole pamphlet, in poetry and prose, inspired by the event, where he waxes philosophical about the matter. Here is a page from Birkhath Yosef, this pamphlet:

In following years, the idea spread among various Litvaks, both in Lithuania and, later on, in Palestine. However, most of these Litvaks were interesting only in writing the 5 megilloth, for public reading in synagogue on the various holidays, and the Nevi'im, for use in public reading of the Haftaroth. Nonetheless, there were some exceedingly inspired individuals who wrote out scrolls of the not-usually-liturgical books of Nakh. This is mentioned in writings by R' Shemuel Shelomo Boyarski (link), who writes about the scrolls that he himself has written, and Akiva Yosef Schlesinger (link), who writes about the scrolls written by a certain Barukh Shelomo.

Her is the title page of Boyarski's Amudei Sheish:

Moreover, I have held in my hands a scroll of Iyyov, written in 19th-century Lithuania or (most probably) Palestine, and a scroll of Divre Ha-yamim was sold at Kedem Auction House a few years ago (link). (It was sold for only $2000. If I had known at the time, I would have bid more than that. And now it's in private hands, and I can't even see it or access it. Grrr.) Moreover, Yossi Ofer has blogged about a scroll of Mishle that was found in the National Library of Israel earlier this year (link). He writes that this scroll was probably the very one written by Boyarski, because he knows of nobody else who was writing scrolls of Kethuvim (besides megilloth) at the time -- but in fact, the phenomenon was more widespread than just Boyarski.

In fact, here's a fascinating advertisement from 1912:

TORAH SCROLLS,
Neviim, Kesuvim, Megilles, Tefillin, Mezuzes, Atzei Chayyim, Rimmonim, Plates, Torah-Pointers, Battim, Parshiyes, Tefillin-straps, Megille-containers, mezuze-boxes, parchment
New and Used
Possible to Order in Jerusalem from the Adresse (אדריסה) listed Below
"Perfect"/"Plain" lettering [=Beis Yôsef, presumably], and Vellish lettering
small and large
written by reliable, expert scribes
Neviim (and Kesuvim): "Perfect"/"Plain" lettering, and Vellish lettering, small and large, written by reliable, expert scribes, with the פתוחות וסתומות וחסר ויתר written according to the "Keter" of Ben-Asher, and other reliable sources
Megilles: Small and large, "Perfect" lettering and Vellish lettering
11, 14, 42, and line, with or without boxes
Megille boxes: Of polished or sanded olive-wood, or of silver
Tefillin: Polished (=smooth), of one piece of leather, or one piece plus the מעברתא, Dakkes and Gasses, Rashi and Rabbeinu Tam
Battim: Square, Peshutim, of One Piece of Leather, or one piece plus the מעברתא, Dakkes and Gasses
Retzues: Wide or narrow, מעובד לשמן or Al Tenai
for Dakkes and Gasses
Mezuzes: Small or large,
"Perfect" lettering or Vellish lettering, with cases or without cases
Mezuze-cases: Made of olive-wood. Closed or open, round or rectangular.
Atzei Chayyim: of plain wood, or olive wood
simple, complex, or inset
with silver, with [צרף -- some cheaper form of silver??], or with bone
Rimmônim and Plates: Of silver or English Silver
(what's "English Silver"?)
Torah-pointers: Of silver, English Silver, or olive-wood
Parchment: Of all types
EVERYTHING IS MADE IN ERETZ YISROEL, BY JEWS
EVERYTHING WITH DILIGENCE AND PRECISION, AND GREATLY KOSHER
EVERYTHING IS CHECKED BY TWO CHECKERS
IT IS ALSO POSSIBLE TO FIND PRE-MADE STUFF
Addresse: Isaac Iacob Jellin Jerusalem Palestina [in Latin characters]

Especially interesting is that you can order Nakh scrolls in Vellish, i.e. Sephardic script! (The word "vell[i]sh" is a somewhat dismissive expression to refer to Sephardim, or speakers of Romance languages in general.) What Sephardim are ordering Nakh scrolls? (Weird Jerusalem ones, presumably.) Or, alternatively, what Ashkenazim in Jerusalem are using Vellish? The current Vellish script is more-or-less identical to the old medieval Ashkenazic script, but what Ashkenazim were still writing in it in the 19th century? Bohemian ones, apparently, but were there a lot of them in Jerusalem, and would they have been interested in the nouveau Litvishe shtick of writing Nakh-scrolls? Anyway, "Vellish" script is much easier to write than current Ashkenazic script, and therefore is significantly cheaper, as anyone who has shopped around for tefillin knows. Perhaps this is why a Litvak might want to order Nakh scrolls in Vellishe script?

(And note also that R' Chayim Volozhiner owned a scroll of Shir Ha-shirim in Vellishe script. How did it come into his possession? What Sephardim were writing Shir Ha-shirim on scrolls before or during the time of the Gaon? So many unanswered questions....)

This post deals only with the material culture aspect of the scrolls of Nakh, and does not deal with the halakhic or philosophical rationales behind why someone might want to produce them. Also, it does not deal with the question of how these scrolls might have been used, in ritual or non-ritual contexts. As such, it only scratches the surface of the issue, and there remains a whole book to be written about the topic. If any readers of this post know any information about any scrolls of Kethuvim (besides the megilloth) from the 18th, 19th, or 20th centuries, information that is not covered in this post, we will be delighted to hear from you in the comments, whether here or on Facebook.

***

Here is the ad, as it appeared in the original publication; Moria, November 20, 1912.

Shadal series #15 - On Shadal's unusual rabbinic ordination - a guest post by Daniel A. Klein

One day I was lazily browsing through a microfiche reel and I suddenly stopped. It was the long lost semicha certificate of Samuel David Luzzatto! I copied it and promptly took it home and asked Dan Klein to translate it for me. 

Actually, I kid. I was looking for it of course. After Shadal's passing in 1865, his son Isaia made it his business to collect and publish as much of his father's literary legacy as he could (or wanted to; I've seen one too many references to letters in archives that contained more material than was actually published in, e.g., Igrot Shadal). One interesting thing, which he evidently considered fairly ephemeral, he chose to publish in August of 1877 in a magazine called the Corriere Israelitico (and, unfortunately, only in Italian translation without the original Hebrew). This was the text of a certificate of rabbinic ordination awarded to Shadal by the Chief Rabbi of Gorizia. 

In his own memoirs Shadal writes that his primary teacher, Rabbi Eliezer Abraham Ha-levi of Trieste, informed him at age 15 that he could be on track to receive rabbinic ordination at age 20 if he chooses. Shadal, however, did not consider himself suited for the rabbinate, being shy on the one hand, and dramatic and harboring lofty visions of scholarship for its own sake, on the other. So he declined. To which his rabbi remarked: "Luzzatto wants to be a hakham, but not a rav." 

As shocking as this sounds now, apparently in Italy one was called to the Torah as one had been ordained. (I know!) Thus, even if you were already a world-renowned talmid hakham, and even the teacher of a rising percentage of all the Italian rabbis to-be, without rabbinic ordination one could not be called to the Torah as a rabbi, not even Shadal. 

So digging through the dusty, squeaky, heat-emitting microfilms I located Isaia's article, took it home, and shared it with my friend Dan Klein who was inspired to translate it. Read - or skip - to the end. 

Actually, the article consists of two separate documents, and a short letter by Shadal. Isaia explains that the first is a recommendation letter by the Chief Rabbi of Trieste (Abram de Cologna, formerly the Chief Rabbi of Paris) and the second is the text of a semicha granted to his father by Isaac Samuel Reggio's (Yashar) father, Rabbi Abraham Reggio. Included is SDL's reply to the elder Reggio. Although Isaia is not completely sure, he guesses that the reason this ordination was given to his 38 year old father was  that the powers-that-be at the Rabbinical Seminary where Shadal taught considered it unseemly for him, one of its two teachers, to lack ordination, and instructed him to get it. This would make sense, as why else would he have gotten such an honorary degree, so to speak, from his friend's father? Perhaps the rabbi was the only one he didn't feel like a fool writing to ask for it. On the other hand, perhaps someone else (the younger Reggio himself, for example) was the one who asked for it. The latter interpretation might be inferred from Shadal's response to the semicha, also included here, in which he says it was "unexpected." Taken literally  - it was unexpected. In any case, here it is. 

Thanks, Dan! - S. 

PS A partial translation of this article did appear once before, but it is long lost, I believe. If and when I publish my Shadal essays both versions will appear, at least if Dan is kind enough to give his permission to me.

A Certificate and a Diploma for Samuel David Luzzatto

I believe I am doing something that will be appreciated by the readers of the Corriere, and especially by the people of Trieste, by offering them two unedited documents regarding the life of my revered father and their illustrious fellow citizen, extracting these documents from a long series of Materials Concerning the Life of Samuel David Luzzatto that I am busily collecting, and for the compilation of which I appeal for the cooperation of all the friends of S.D.L., but especially that of his scholars, those of the Schools of Padua and Trieste, some of whom have already accepted my proposal most eagerly.

It is only proper that these documents should see the light of day for the first time in that Trieste which gave him birth, and which still preserves so vividly the traditions of that Samuel David son of the "tornidor" of Pondares,¹ who, as long as he lived, gloried in being its son.

The first of these documents is in Italian, because it evidently was made use of in the application for the professorship at the Istituto Rabbinico of Padua.

The second, which is actually a rabbinic diploma, set forth in Hebrew and written in the antique style on parchment, was translated into Italian at my request by my dear friend, His Excellency Moisè Coen Porto, Chief Rabbi of Venice,² overcoming more than a few difficulties that arose in the translation process whenever an exact and faithful version was sought to be made, rather than a free paraphrase. Whenever a request is made to me to publish the original itself in some Hebrew publication, I will willingly furnish a copy.

This document was written on April 26, 1838, and in a letter written two weeks later (May 10, 1838) by the illustrious Isaac Reggio to my father, I find the following postscript: "After having written the present letter, today your paper directly reached His Excellency my father [Abraham Reggio], who renders thanks to you for the courteous expressions used in his regard."

Concerning the relevant request that must have been made by my father, I have found nothing, either in the copies of his letters or the letters in his own hand in my possession. However, from a letter of his of April 19, 1838, I perceive that on the previous day he had arrived in Gorizia, taking lodging in the Reggio home.

With respect to the motive that could have induced him to seek this title of Hakham, although it was quite alien to his nature to seek titles, lacking for the time being any positive information, I will make a simple hypothesis: I suppose that since his distinguished colleague, Prof. Lelio della Torre, had already been bestowed with the title of Rabbi, while my father possessed merely that of Maskil ve-Navon, as may be inferred from this document itself, the director of the Institute wanted my father, for the sake of the Institute's own dignity, to procure a similar title from some distinguished rabbi, especially for the solemnities attending the opening and closing of the Collegio, which were probably conducted in the synagogue, and that my father, having gone to Trieste and Gorizia in April 1838, spoke about it with Reggio.

Dr. Isaia Luzzatto

Padua, June 27, 1877*

* After having written the above, I found within a bundle of various autograph writings of my father a rough copy of a letter addressed, on May 8, 1838, to His Excellency R. Abraham Reggio, which I transcribe here in its entirety:

Most excellent Sir:

The most honorable letter of Your exalted Excellency³ and the attached Diploma were as sweet to me as they were unexpected⁴, and they afforded me a new proof of that goodness which so eminently distinguishes your character. I will always regard as the greatest of my honors the approbation of the venerable Nestor⁵ of the Rabbis of our age, whose wisdom, piety, and virtue I affirm as equally exemplary, notable, and renowned.

May Your exalted Excellency continue to inspire, for many more happy years, the joy of all those who have the good fortune of knowing you, and to receive the deserved homage of your admirers and devotees, among whom will always have the glory of being counted.

Your humble and most obedient servant,

S.D.L.

Padua, May 8, 1838

Here, then, are the two documents:

Certificate by Rabbi Cologna

I attest that Signor Samuel David Luzzatto, a native of Trieste, is recognized here as a man of exemplary morality and of the finest character; that he is distinguished for his vast knowledge in various branches of literature, both sacred and secular; that he is a professor of Hebrew language and sacred exegesis, and is a profound philologist; and that he has acquired a distinguished reputation as the author of various compositions published by him, which have obtained full approbation on the part of the literary public.

I attest, then, that the said S. D. Luzzatto is, in my judgment, indisputably capable of occupying, with respect to said subjects, the chair of Professor in a Rabbinical Institute.

Chief Rabbi A. Cologna

Trieste, November 11, 1827

Diploma

In the Name of God

O contemporaries, see this new flask that is full of old wine, the oldest, without adulteration. An all-containing cluster, a reasoning thinker and intellectual like Halcol and Darda^†, in Bible as well as in Mishnah and Gemara.

This star that emits a splendid light is the wise and intelligent Signor Samuel David Luzzatto, Professor at the Collegio Rabbinico of the famed city of Padua. The lion of society, who points the plain way to men of heart who eagerly learn in his school the statutes and laws of God in clear language. Renowned grammarian of the twenty-four books, celebrated poet in rhyme and meter. Behold, it is he who, from the chair of instruction, guides them on the path so that they may know and make known the things prohibited and lawful, together with morality, until they become chiefs of communities, in whatever places they may find shelter; hence (it may be deduced that) he who causes to be done is greater and more honorable than he who does. Seeing this great phenomenon, of which there has not been the like for centuries upon centuries, and his great wisdom in all and for all, to his friends and acquaintances I say that clear are the courses of the river of his wisdom, and that he has force and vigor. I say, let not his erudition be enclosed in a corner, notwithstanding his pure humility, and notwithstanding that titles and ranks of dignity have no importance to him; everyone should take hold of him as a shield and buckler, and thus the inhabitants of the world will see how great is the office of the law.

Therefore my heart tells me, and I have the word (ready) on my tongue, to exalt him and to crown him, throughout the regions of Israel, with the Rabbinic cloak of royalty, for to him pertains the firstborn's share; and with the assent of the Heavenly King and of the Tanna and Amora^‡, I place my two hands upon him and invest him with a glorious crown, and I authorize him to be called to the Torah with the title of "the most excellent, learned, intelligent, and wise Signor Samuel David Luzzatto (Magnalad Achacham)⁶; this is an honor that comes of its own accord to one who bears the heavy weight; let this be done so that all the Community of Israel may hear and say, "This is the Law, and this its recompense."

And now, with palms stretched forth to Heaven in awe, I pray that God may render great and mighty the Professor of His just law, and that He raise him to all the rabbinical degrees in abundant and overflowing measure, with long life, plentiful sustenance, and riches of every kind. Amen, may this be His will.

These are the words of the weak voice of the one who is placed in the position of religious authority here in Gorizia and its environs, who writes and subscribes with his seal, today, the first of the month of Iyyar of this year (whose number is derived from numerical value of the plene form of the word biyrushalayim in the verse [Zech. 2:16]), "And He shall again choose Jerusalem" ([5]598).

The words of the Hebrew servant whose name is Abraham Reggio.

1 "Tornidor" is evidently the Trieste dialect's equivalent of the standard Italian "tornitore," meaning "turner" or "woodworker." This was the occupation of Hezekiah Luzzatto, Shadal's father. The family lived at 1306 Contrada Pondares in Trieste.

2 Porto (1834-1918) was a student of Shadal at the Collegio Rabbinico.

3 In the original, "Sua Magnalad Ecc.ma," a combination of Hebrew and Italian; magnalad is the Italian Jewish pronunciation of ma'alat.

4 Emphasis in the original as transcribed by Isaia Luzzatto.

5 Nestor, a character in Homer's Iliad and Odyssey, came to be a proverbial figure of an elder statesman and wise counselor.

† Names of wise men in the time of Solomon, see I Kings 5:11 [note by M. Coen Porto].

‡ "Tanna" is the author of the Mishnah and "Amora" is the author of the Gemara; here this means, with the assent of the greatest celebrated Rabbis [note by M. Coen Porto].

6 The Italian Jewish pronunciation of ma'alat ha-hakham, "the exalted scholar," i.e. Rabbi.