Auction 1 - Rare Hebrew Books, Manuscripts & Rabbinic Letters
Lot 54:
Description
The first printed edition of Masechet Sotah, issued as part of Daniel Bomberg’s celebrated first complete edition of the Talmud Bavli (1520–1523). Although the Soncino press had previously printed numerous individual tractates, Sotah never appeared among them, making the present volume the tractate’s first appearance in print. More broadly, Bomberg’s monumental Talmud established the typographical form (tzurat ha-daf), foliation, and page layout that have remained the universal standard for every subsequent edition of the Babylonian Talmud to the present day.
The volume concludes with Piskei Tosafot and Maimonides’ Commentary on the Mishnah, among the important editorial features introduced into Bomberg’s Talmud. Particularly noteworthy is the celebrated woodcut diagram illustrating Rashi’s commentary on folio 43a, generally regarded as the only diagram printed directly within the first Bomberg Talmud; elsewhere, spaces intended for illustrations were typically left blank to be completed by hand after printing.
An attractive copy retaining its title page. The final leaf bears an early ownership inscription reading: “זה הספר שלי אברהם דאניטי יצ״ו” (“This book belongs to me, Abraham Daniti, may his Rock and Redeemer preserve him”), together with additional manuscript ownership inscriptions on the endleaf.
53 leaves (leaf 52 not numbered), complete. Title page and a few margins professionally reinforced. Occasional minor worming and light staining. Contemporary and later manuscript ownership inscriptions. Brief glosses in margins. Modern attractive half-leather binding.
References: Habermann, Daniel Bomberg, no. 20
Provenance: The distinguished library of Mr. Marvin Shick, a prominent scholar, communal figure, and discerning collector whose library reflected a lifetime of dedication to classical Jewish learning and heritage.
Opening Price: $18,000
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