Manuscript, parchment Megillat Yechezkel – order of verses and prayers to be recited at the tomb of the prophet Yechezkel on the Euphrates. [Iraq, ca. 19th century].
Ink on gevil (soft, brown parchment), in Iraqi Torah scroll script. 18 columns on 9 membranes, approx. 13 lines per column. Parchment lace for fastening. Mounted on a carved wooden roller.
Iraqi Jews customarily read from such scrolls during the pilgrimage to the gravesite of the prophet Yechezkel on Shavuot (Eid al-Ziyara) and Elul.
The contents of the present scroll: sections of the Book of Yechezkel (Maaseh Merkavah – from Yechezkel chapter 1; Yechezkel 3:12, and the Vision of the Dry Bones – chapter 37); a lengthy prayer – "Peace be upon you our master and teacher, peace to you and peace to your pure and holy body here buried… O Lord, G-d of Israel… in the merit of the righteous man buried here, the prophet Yechezkel…"; several chapters of Tehillim and rabbinic sayings; and another brief prayer – "May it be Your will… that everything we requested of You be in Your eyes like the incense… for You hear prayer for the sake of all the righteous and this righteous man, the prophet Yechezkel, for You hear the prayer of every mouth…". At the top of the scroll is a dedicatory inscription: "Dedicated by R. Abdallah Abd Lazir. In the merit of our master the prophet Yechezkel, may G-d grant him the wishes of his heart for the good for His service, and may all his 248 limbs and 365 sinews be healthy and complete, Amen".
The tomb of the prophet Yechezkel was venerated by Jews of Iraq and neighboring regions, and for hundreds of years was a focal point for pilgrimage. The tomb is located in the Al Kifl village (known as "the village of our master, prophet Yechezkel"), in a structure built on the banks of the Euphrates (approx. 120 km south of Baghdad and 28 km south of Hillah, Babylon, Iraq). R. Binyamin of Tudela, who visited the site in 1170 writes: "...that place is venerated by the Jewish people to this day; people come from afar to pray and celebrate there between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, and the exilarch and heads of the yeshivas also come from Baghdad...".
In 1180, R. Petachiah of Regensburg visited the site and likewise described the mass pilgrimage and miracles which took place on that occasion: "...on Sukkot, people come from all countries, and the entrance widens and heightens on its own to the extent camels can enter; some sixty thousand or eighty thousand Jews convene there, apart from the Muslims, and build Sukkot in the courtyard of Yechezkel. Then the entrance contracts to its original size and everyone witnesses it..." (for more information about the Tomb of Yechezkel, associated customs and historical attestations, see: Avraham Ben-Yaakov, Kevarim Kedoshim BeBavel, Jerusalem 1974, pp. 38 ff.).
Many wondrous stories are associated with the Tomb of Yechezkel, and many Jews would visit it to pray and beg for salvation. There was an ancient custom to visit Yechezkel's tomb on Shavuot, on the first day of which the beginning of the Book of Yechezkel (Maaseh Merkavah) is read as haftarah. Thousands of Jews from the area would participate in this event. Another prevalent pilgrimage time was the month of Elul and the subsequent festivals of Tishrei. On both these occasions, pilgrims to the gravesite would recite a special order of verses and prayers from parchment scrolls (see Kevarim Kedoshim BeBavel, ibid, pp. 80-81).
Height of parchment: approx. 11.5 cm. Good-fair condition. Dark stains and wear. Slight erasure of some letters. Height of handle: approx. 27.5 cm. Good condition. Minor open fractures.
For more information on other Scrolls of Yechezkel written and dedicated to the prophet Yechezkel, see: David Solomon Sassoon, Descriptive Catalogue of the Hebrew and Samaritan Manuscripts in the Sassoon Library, London (I, pp. 558-564) – one of them is the scroll dedicated by R. Eliyahu Chaim, father of the Ben Ish Chai, in 1859 (Sassoon Ms. 312 – ibid., I, p. 559); Kedem, Auction 83, 6 September 2022, Lot 8.
