Auction 44
Lot 132:
Manuscript commentary on the second section of the Book of Genesis (Bereishit), from Vayetze to Vayechi. The name of the book is “Guidance for the Asker of Questions” (Hadrachat HaShoel b’She’elot), written by Masalem Al-Danafi, or Mishlomo ben Margion HaDanafi, and was completed by his nephew Ibrahim (Avraham) ben Yaakov HaDanafi, who lived in 1778. Arabic handwriting with quotes in purple, antique Samaritan script. The margins have notes, often with the signature of the scribe who mentions things from his father. At the end is a poem praising scribes and their books. The two first leaves and 122-123, and the three last leaves of the original work were replaced with other leaves from the same scribe, probably based on a request from the book’s purchaser. Pages 19-20 have sketched tables for the table of contents but they were left blank apart from the third page, where the Samaritan alphabet is written both normally and with a mirror script. [21], 520 pages.
Written on high-quality Italian paper with a watermark of three crescents.
There is a long inscription in the colophon which reveals a bit of the scribe’s identity and opens a window into the lives of Samaritans of the time and their genealogy: “The end of the writing of this book, the second section of the commentary on the first book of the Torah, was on the eve of Wednesday, the 20th of the ninth month, parallel to the 3rd day of the Khanun month, the first of the year 6326, which is the 3526 of their counting (3 December 1886), by … Salama ben Amran (Amram Kohen Gadol, 1855-1874) ben Salama (Shlomo Kohen Gadol 1798-1855), ben Gazal Hamam (Tuvya Kohen Gadol 1751-1787)….I wrote this honored book at the order of my maternal cousin…dear brother Yosef ben Yosef ben Salama and his brother Fiez ben Askhak (Yitzhak) ben Yosef (ben Margan-Av Sakua) HaDanafit from the house of Ephraim ben Yosef HaTzaddik…and know that you abide by that date, since the writing of the book is for the rememberd brothers, from Saba’s side…Gazal HaKohen, who already ordered it in writing, a commentary of this first book is in two parts, divided between them. Because they loved the commentary they each wanted complete copies so I wrote for them this second section again, I began and finished in a short time.”
Handsome leather binding, closes like a case, faint inscription of a medallion on a couple sides. Stains, overall excellent condition, rare.
Share this lot:
