Lot 84
Lengthy, Fascinating Letter Handwritten by Rabbi Chaim Palachi – Reporting on His Situation After the Great Fire in Izmir in 1845
Lengthy letter handwritten and signed by R. Chaim Palachi Rabbi of Izmir, addressed to R. Tzvi Hirsch Lehren head of the Pekidim and Amarkalim in Amsterdam. Izmir, Rosh Chodesh Sivan 1845.
Appeal letter sent by R. Chaim Palachi following the fire which broke out in Izmir in 1845. R. Chaim describes the destruction caused by the fire and his distress, particularly from the loss of his books: "The fire has left us destitute… especially the lack of books which are our very life and without which we are deemed dead… not to mention the absence of many material necessities, the lack of sustenance and adequate clothing. Especially since we have two adult girls, my daughter and the daughter of my eldest son R. Avraham… Woe to us that this has happened in our times…".
R. Chaim Palachi relates that he sent appeal letters to others, including Baron Rothschild of Frankfurt am Main and R. Aharon Fuld (a rabbi in Frankfurt), and complains that he didn't receive a response. He concludes with blessings: "Until old age, with much wealth, honor, strength and peace, Chaim Palachi".
Izmir was struck by large fires every few years. In his books, R. Chaim Palachi mentions the fires of 1772, 1811, 1837, 1841 and 1845. These fires destroyed houses with all their contents, and many were left without a roof over their head, with no food or clothing. These fires also caused a lost for posterity, with the destruction of thousands of precious manuscripts and books. R. Chaim himself lost over fifty manuscript compositions to the fire of 1841 (regarding the loss of books in fires in Izmir, see: Yaari, HaDfus HaIvri BeIzmir, Areshet I, 1959, pp. 115-116; see also: Meir Benayahu, The Great Fires in Izmir and Adrianopolis, Reshumot II, 1946, pp. 144-155).
R. Chaim Palachi – HaChabif (1787-1868), an outstanding Torah scholar well versed in hidden and revealed realms of the Torah. He served as rabbi of Izmir and was a leading Torah scholar of his generation. He composed seventy-two books (corresponding with the numerical value of his name Chaim, adding the number of letters), on Halachah, Aggadah and ethics. He was the close disciple of his mother's father, the renowned Torah scholar R. Refael Yosef Hazan, author of Chikrei Lev. In his books, R. Chaim extensively quotes his grandfather, as well as his father R. Yaakov Palachi. At the age of 25, in a ceremony attended by the entire community, R. Chaim was accorded rabbinical ordination by his grandfather, who bedecked him with a special rabbinic robe he personally purchased, in honor of his earning the title of "HaChacham HaShalem".
Over the years, he rose in the ranks of rabbinic hierarchy, reaching the position of "HaRav HaKollel", head of the Izmir Beit Din, and was recognized by the Turkish government as Chacham Bashi. His exceptional wisdom and eminence in Torah earned him the status of rabbi of the city. The Jewish community in Izmir was comprised in those days of various congregations, each with different customs and their own rabbi, and only R. Chaim bore absolute authority, his rulings and opinions being accepted by all the congregations in the city. His halachic authority exceeded the boundaries of the city, and he earned worldwide recognition as a posek, responding to thousands of queries addressed to him from all over the world, even beyond the Ottoman Empire, such as Poland, Germany and North Africa.
R. Chaim was a most prolific author, covering all subjects of the Torah. He composed many works, of Talmudic commentary, halachic rulings, homiletics and Aggadah. When the fire broke out in 1841, he had already produced dozens of manuscript compositions, which he toiled on from a young age. The fire consumed 54 of his compositions (see in more detail in Kedem Auction 63, item 66). Despite the great tragedy of the loss of most of his writings, he gathered strength and went ahead composing new works. In the books he printed after the fire, he would add at the foot of the title page the serial number of the composition. The names of his books usually allude to his name Chaim in various ways (Nefesh Chaim, Chaim Techila, Torah VeChaim, Chaim LeRosh, Chaim VeShalom, Kaf HaChaim, Re'eh Chaim, HaKatuv LaChaim, Yimtza Chaim, Birkat Moadecha LeChaim, Tzavaa MeChaim, Artzot HaChaim, Tzedakah LeChaim, and others).
The fire mentioned in this letter broke out some four years after the great fire of 1841. In a responsum by R. Chaim Palachi printed in Responsa Shema Avraham (by his son R. Avraham Palachi; no. 51), he writes: "In 1841 and 1845 there were large fires in our city of Izmir, may trouble not occur again, and charity monies were sent from all over for the needy whose homes were burned in the fire…". There he adds that in the fire of 1845, the non-Jews were affected more than the Jews, whereas in the fire of 1841, the Jews suffered more than the non-Jews.
[1] double leaf (folded and sent by post). 20 cm. Bluish paper. Good condition. Stains. Folding marks. Tear (from opening the letter), not affecting text.
