Printed leaf, riddle poem. [Mantua?, Italy, 18th/19th century].

Illustration of riddle.

Woodcut flowery frame.

Leaf unsigned, and author and location of printing are unknown. The aim or event for which the riddle was composed is also unknown.

33 cm. Fair condition. Stains (dampstains and mold stains to margins). Folding marks. Minor tears to folds, slightly affecting text.

Not recorded in bibliographical sources or in NLI catalog.

Provenance: Collection of Mozes Heiman Gans.

Decorated parchment ketubah, for wedding of David son of Avraham Refael Rodriguez Pereira and Leah daughter of Yaakov Mendez. Bordeaux, France, 4th Nisan 5538 [April 1, 1778].

Ink and paint on parchment.

Written on rectangular parchment sheet, decorated in characteristic style of Sephardic ketubot in Bordeaux. Ketubah text featured in center, in Sephardic semi-cursive script, with signatures of groom and two witnesses at foot (in Spanish, in indistinct Latin characters), with signature of "David son of R. Yaakov Chaim Athias" (in Hebrew), Rabbi of Bordeaux.

The ketubah text is surrounded by a rectangular frame with a blessing in large square letters. The edges are decorated with illustrations of branches with colorful flowers and leaves emerging from a vase.

27.5X36 cm. Overall good condition. Folding marks, slightly affecting illustrations and text. Slight defects.

The present ketubah formerly belonged to the collection of Mozes Heiman Gans (1917-1987), Amsterdam, from which a digitized version was made available on the NLI ketubah site, listing 990052789760205171.

Decorated parchment ketubah, for the wedding of Yitzchak son of Moshe Diena and Brunetta daughter of Netanel Modona. Modena, 5th Sivan 5560 [May 29, 1800].

Ink and paint on parchment.

Ketubah text written in square letters on a rectangular parchment sheet surrounded with blessings and verses written in large letters. Signature of witnesses, rabbis of Modena, at foot of ketubah text: Yishmael son of Avraham Yitzchak HaKohen and Shlomo Yedidiah son of A[vraham] Ch[ai] Senigallia (see below).

Ketubah mounted on a large parchment frame from an earlier time – in the 18th century – with upper edges decoratively cut, and decorated with meticulous and colorful illustrations in vegetal patterns. The reuse of decorative ketubah frames is unique to the Jews of Italy, and is known from other Italian ketubot.

R. Yishmael HaKohen, Rabbi of Modena (1724-1810), leading Italian rabbi and prominent posek. In 1782, he succeeded his brother R. David HaKohen as Rabbi of Modena, effectively leading all of Italian Jewry.

R. Shlomo Yedidiah Senigallia, an Italian rabbi, also served as Rabbi of Modena during the 18th century, and was a member of R. Yishmael HaKohen's Beit Din.

Frame: 39X53 cm. Ketubah: 28.5X36 cm. Overall good condition. Creases and stains, slightly affecting text and decorations. Stains and remains of pasting, discernible mainly on verso. Minor tears to inner margins of decorative frame, as a result of cutting previous ketubah. Slit to top edge.

On reuse of decorative ketubot in Italy, see remarks of Prof. Shalom Sabar on ketubot K96 and K105 of the René Braginsky collection, and see: Shalom Sabar, The Art of the Ketubbah, New York, 2022, I, no. 1 (KET 296).

The present ketubah previously belonged to the collection of Mozes Heiman Gans (1917-1987), from which it was digitized on the NLI ketubah site, entry 990052918980205171.

Ketubah for the wedding of Elisha son of the lawyer Refael Nissim and Simchah daughter of David Yosef HaLevi Valensin. Livorno, Italy, Cheshvan 1852.

Parchment ketubah. A rectangular ornamental border composed of verses of blessings.

The scribe of the ketubah is R. Avraham Baruch Piperno, who incorporates his name into the text of the ketubah.

The text of the Tenaim is below the text of the ketubah, followed by signatures of the groom, then signature of bride, signature of R. Avraham Baruch Piperno confirming their signatures, and signatures of the witnesses (in Italian).

R. Avraham Baruch Piperno, a Livorno sage, author of Kol Ugav (Livorno, 1846) and other works. Scribe of the Livorno community.

29X43 cm. Good condition. Folding marks. Few stains and ink smears.

Manuscript, kabbalistic prayers and kavanot for the shofar blower (Tokea). [Italy, ca. 18th century].

Square script, partially vocalized, and Sephardic semi-cursive (Rashi) script, comprising various kabbalistic prayers, some based on the Arizal and Shlah (p. 5a cites the Shlah on p. 217b, referring to its first edition, Amsterdam 1648), while others appear in Chemdat Yamim. On p. 1a, prayer for a shofar blower uninitiated into the kabbalah; on p. 2a is a prayer for the initiated. On p. 6b, prayer for shofar blowing, comprising all the kavanot of the Arizal.

Kabbalistic glosses in several places, on margins or between lines (some trimmed).

[6] leaves. 20 cm. Thin parchment. Overall good condition. Stains. New binding.