Auction 96 Early Printed Books, Chassidut and Kabbalah, Books Printed in Jerusalem, Letters and Manuscripts
- (-) Remove of filter of
- and (74) Apply and filter
- letter (55) Apply letter filter
- rabbi (53) Apply rabbi filter
- manuscript (42) Apply manuscript filter
- 11 (21) Apply 11 filter
- 11th (21) Apply 11th filter
- chabad (21) Apply chabad filter
- chaluka (21) Apply chaluka filter
- countri (21) Apply countri filter
- lithuania (21) Apply lithuania filter
- lithuania, (21) Apply lithuania, filter
- manuscripts, (21) Apply manuscripts, filter
- nissan (21) Apply nissan filter
- other (21) Apply other filter
- poland (21) Apply poland filter
- th (21) Apply th filter
- book (19) Apply book filter
- dedic (19) Apply dedic filter
- gloss (19) Apply gloss filter
- import (19) Apply import filter
- ownership (19) Apply ownership filter
- signatur (19) Apply signatur filter
- stamp (19) Apply stamp filter
- stamps, (19) Apply stamps, filter
- document (13) Apply document filter
- environ (13) Apply environ filter
- hungari (13) Apply hungari filter
- it (13) Apply it filter
- rebb (13) Apply rebb filter
Large assorted collection of letters of rabbis from Hungary and Romania regarding divorce and marriage, agunot and Holocaust survivors:
• Lengthy letter from R. David Sperber (author of Afarkasta DeAnya). Brașov, 1946.
• Two letters from R. Yitzchak Yaakov Weiss, head of the Grosswardein Beit Din (the Minchat Yitzchak). Grosswardein (Oradea), 1947.
• Two letters from R. Azriel Yehudah Leibowitz, head of the Hajdúhadház Beit Din (author of Ezer MiYehudah). Hajdúhadház, [ca. 1946-1947].
• Letter handwritten and signed by R. Efraim Fishel Hershkowitz, dayan and posek in Ratzfert. Ratzfert, Sivan 1947.
• Record of testimony signed by R. Yitzchak Elbaum, Rabbi of Cieszyn. Cieszyn, Elul 1946.
• Record of testimony signed by dayanim of the Satmar Beit Din: R. Yishai Hecht, R. Moshe Aryeh Freund and R. Yechezkel Shraga Brach. Satmar, Adar 1949.
• Mimeographed leaf with summary of a responsum from R. Chaim Mordechai Roller, by the Special Beit Din for Agunot in Budapest, which relied on this ruling in giving thousands of agunot permission to remarry after the Holocaust. [Budapest, ca, 1945-1946].
8 signed letters and one mimeograph. Varying size and condition.
Lengthy letter handwritten and signed by R. Levi Yitzchak Grünwald, Rabbi of the Arugat HaBosem Tzeilem community. Brooklyn, New York, [Adar II] 1965.
Sent to his friend R. David Moskowitz of Bonyhád and Miskolc, in response to his letter on the topic of unintentional labor on Shabbat. Written between Purim and Pesach [19th Adar II], the letter opens and closes with allusions to past and future redemptions.
R. Levi Yitzchak Grünwald (1893-1980), outstanding Torah scholar and holy man. Youngest son and close disciple of R. Moshe Grünwald Rabbi of Khust, the Arugat HaBosem. Served as Rabbi of various Hungarian communities, and later of Tzeilem (Deutschkreutz, Austria), from which he was known as "the Rabbi of Tzeilem". In 1938 he settled in Brooklyn, where he founded and headed the Arugat HaBosem community. He campaigned for true Torah observance in the United States, especially on matters of kashrut and purity, and was at the forefront of the establishment of Torah and Chassidut in the United States.
Aerogram, 21.5X30.5 cm. Good-fair condition. Stains, wear and folding marks. Minor tears to folds.
Large collection of over seventy letters and stamped documents (lists and reports of donors), sent by rabbis, rebbes, tzedakah collectors and various donors to Kollel Shomrei HaChomot – Kollel Ungarn. Hungary, Transylvania and other regions, ca. 1920s-1930s.
The present collection includes letters and documents signed by the following rabbis:
• R. Binyamin Fuchs, Rabbi of Grosswardein (Oradea), president of Kollel Shomrei HaChomot. • Rebbe Naftali Teitelbaum, Rabbi of Nyírbátor (2 letters). • R. Meir Leib Frei, Rabbi of Šurany. • R. David Yehudah Leib Silberstein, Rabbi of Vác. • R. Yosef Elimelech Kahana, Rabbi of Ungvár (Uzhhorod). • R. Moses Chaim Litch-Rosenbaum, Rabbi of Kleinwardein (Kisvárda). • R. Shaul Rosenberg, Rabbi of Ratzfert (Újfehértó). • Rebbe Eliezer Lipa HaLevi Silberman of Ratzfert, son of R. Moshe of Ratzfert and grandson of R. Hertzka of Ratzfert (3 letters). • R. Chaim HaLevi Silberman (3 letters). • Rebbe Naftali Gross of Kerestir-Berbesht (son-in-law of Rebbe Avraham Steiner of Kerestir). • R. Yosef Meir Moshe HaKohen Steiner, Rabbi of Ilok – son-in-law of R. Hillel Lichtenstein of Kolomyia (3 letters). • R. Yisrael Hillel Yitzchak HaKohen Steiner, Rabbi of Ilok. • R. Yaakov Shalom Sofer, Sárospatak. • R. Moshe Eliezer, Rabbi of Novo Mesto. • R. Tzvi Segal Prager, Rabbi of Poprad. • R. Chaim Yaakov Moshe Krauss, Rabbi of Ragendorf (Rajka). • R. Moshe Bunam Krauss, Rabbi of Baden (3 letters). • R. Yisrael Broda, dayan and posek of Michalovce (author of Ishei Yisrael). • R. Shalom Tzvi Adler, Rabbi of Diosig. • R. Yerachmiel Katzburg, Rabbi of Ózd. • R. Yitzchak Tzvi Sofer, Rabbi of Fabric, Timișoara (3 letters). • R. Tzvi Hirsch HaKohen, Rabbi of Derecske. • R. Moshe Chaim Grünfeld, Rabbi of Sajószentpéter (5 letters). • R. Efraim Grünfeld, Rabbi of Rimavská Seč (2 letters). • R. Menachem HaKohen Fischer, Rabbi of Sárvár. • R. Mordechai Leib Fischer, Rabbi of Nagykáta. • R. Menachem Mendel Schick, Rabbi of Szikszó. • R. Asher Anshel Schick, Szikszó. • R. Eliezer Brumer HaLevi, head of the Sanok Beit Din. • R. Yaakov Segal Leibowitz, Rabbi of Kaposvár. • R. Peretz Tuviah Stein, Rabbi of Diósgyőr. • R. Menachem Mendel Tennenbaum, Rabbi of Tarnów. • R. Moshe Tennenbaum, Rabbi of Moldava nad Bodvou (4 letters). • R. Chaim Sofer-Schreiber, Rabbi of Arad. • R. Avraham Aharon Katz, head of the Nitra Beit Din. • R. Alexander Chaim Schwartz, Rabbi of Gurahonț. • R. Yisrael HaLevi Jungreis, Rabbi of Nádudvar. • R. Bentzion Sneiders, Rabbi of Raab. • R. Elazar Singer, Rabbi of Rimavská Sobota. • R. Shalom Wieder, Rabbi of Nyíregyháza. • R. Bentzion HaLevi Ungar (son of R. Shmuel David, Rabbi of Nitra). • And many more letters.
77 letters and postcards, most on official stationery. Varying size and condition. Some with open tears and singeing (saved from fire), affecting text.
Collection of 38 official forms – birth, marriage and death certificates issued for Jews of various communities in Austria-Hungary and nearby regions. [Austria-Hungary and nearby regions, 1855-1950]. Hungarian and German.
Official forms, some handwritten and others printed and filled in by hand, signed by Rabbis of cities and community officials, and bearing official stamps of the communities.
The collection includes: • Official form from Troppau (Opava; 1855). • Form of the Budapest community (1876). • Form signed by R. Shraga Feish Pollak, Rabbi of Novi Bečej and Vác (1886). • Form stamped by the Sanz community (1887). • Form signed by the Rabbi of Timișoara and with the community stamp (1892). • Form signed by R. Yaakov Steinhardt, Rabbi of Arad (1884). • Two forms signed by R. Lipa Rosenberg, with the stamp of the Arad community (1893/1895). • Form with the stamp of the Keszeg community (1914). • Form with the stamp of the Tarnów community (1894). • Form with the stamp of the Vienna community (1915). • Form with the stamp of the Przemyśl community (1922). • Marriage certificate of R. Moshe Natan Schick, Rabbi of Miskolc (son of R. Meir Schick, Rabbi of Ónod) and the daughter of R. Moshe Binyamin Ze'ev Lichtenstern, Rabbi of Ürmény (Mojmírovce; Budapest, 1923). • Form signed by R. Arnold Grünfeld, Rabbi of Eger, with the community stamp (1925). • Form signed by R. Moshe Asher Eckstein, Rabbi of Sereď, with the community stamp (1937). • Form signed by R. Yosef Yechiel (Yano) Buxbaum, dayan and posek of Galanta, with the community stamp (1938). • Form signed by the Rabbi of Cegléd, with the community stamp (1938). • Form signed by Dr. Manó Herzog, Rabbi of Kaposvár, with the community stamp. • Form bearing the Munkacs community stamp (1941). • Form bearing the Sighet community stamp (1942). • Form signed by R. Bentzion Halpert, Rabbi of Hajdúnánás (1942). • Birth certificate form of R. Shmuel Shmelke Ginsburg, Rabbi of Mediaș, with stamp of the community (1942). • Form with signature of R. David Gross of Nagykőrös (1943). • Form of the Budapest community (1945). • Forms from after the Holocaust of the Budapest, Miskolc and Ujhel communities. • Additional forms.
[38] leaves. Varying size and condition. Overall good-fair condition.
Collection of 67 forms and documentations of the appointment, election and service of Hungarian rabbis just before the Holocaust. [Hungary and nearby regions, most from late 1930s and early 1940s]. Hungarian (and some Romanian).
Declarations, documents, certificates, protocols, translations and copies of various documents, some handwritten and others printed and filled out by hand, with signatures of leaders of Hungarian communities, official stamps of the communities, and signatures and stamps of local officials; some also bear the signatures of the rabbis and their official stamps.
The present item is a rare and exceptional historical documentation of rabbis and their communities just before the Holocaust, containing much information unknown from other sources. Most of the rabbis and community leaders who signed the documents perished in the Holocaust.
The collection includes documents pertaining to the service and appointment of the following rabbis: • R. Aharon Tzvi Kestenbaum, dayan and posek in Tiszaújlak. • R. Chaim Friedman, Rabbi of Somotor. • R. Meir Leifer, Rabbi of the Yisrael Yaakov Beit Midrash in Khust (son of Rebbe Yisrael Shmelka Leifer of Khust). • R. Shalom Goldenberg, Rabbi of Szentmiklós. • R. Aharon Kahana, Rabbi of Bistra, grandson of Rebbe Yosef Meir Weiss, the Imrei Yosef of Spinka. • R. Tzvi Ze'ev Wolf Golberger of Berehove. • R. Moshe David Friedlander of Grosswardein (Oradea; son of Rebbe Menachem Mendel Friedlander of Borga). • R. Shmuel Landau, Rabbi of Nagybocskó. • R. Yaakov Seidenfeld, Rabbi of Kobyletska Poliana. • R. Moshe Dov Ber Landau, Rabbi of Nyzhni Vorota. • R. Yitzchak Belz and R. Baruch Grünzweig, Rabbis of Ternovo. • R. Meir Weiss, Rabbi of Oroszvég. • R. Yaakov Felberbaum, Rabbi of Zapson and the region. • R. Oskar Klein of Seleuș, Rabbi of Zapson and Onok. • R. Shlomo Yitzchak HaKohen Schönfeld, Rabbi of Tiszaújlak. • R. Yitzchak (Ignaz) Schwartz of Tiszaújlak. • R. Yekutiel Yehudah (Zalman) Halpert, Rabbi of Hajdúnánás. • R. Moshe Halpert, Rabbi of Felsőapsa (Verkhnye Vodyane). • R. Shmuel Edelhauch, Rabbi of Barkasovo and Serne. • R. Ze'ev Sheftel Henich son of R. Natan (Strobach) Edelhauch, dayan and posek of Izky. • R. Natan Yosef Zimtbaum, Rabbi of Ohel Yissachar synagogue in Grosswardein (Oradea). • R. David Gross, Rabbi of Tab. • R. Yitzchak (Ignaz) Gross, Rabbi of Torun. • R. Yechiel David Salzer, dean of the Szerdahély (Miercurea Sibiului) yeshiva. • R. Avraham Eliezer Zitron, Rabbi of Hajdúdorog. • R. Shlomo Zuker, Rabbi of Nagyhalász. • R. Chaim Tzvi Fried, Rabbi of Veľké Kapušany. • R. Moshe Weinberger of Munkacs, Rabbi of Nyagova. • R. Moshe Dov Weissberger, Rabbi of Tárkány. • R. Ze'ev (Vilmos) Lichtenstein, Rabbi of the Beit Midrash of R. Yaakov Farkash in Khust. • R. Avraham Yaakov Goldenberg, Rabbi of the Shevet Achim synagogue in Munkacs. • R. Yosef Yosefowitz, Rabbi of Falucska (Bogarevytsya). • And more.
[67] forms. Varying size and condition. Overall good to fair-good condition. The collection has not been thoroughly examined, and is being sold as is.
"Teachings of our master… teaching the people of G-d the path to follow", bound manuscript (Chabad "Bichel"). [1815]. Hand-Illustrated title page.
Early copying of some 30 letters, discourses and Chasidic homilies by Rebbe Shneur Zalman of Liadi – the Alter Rebbe. This copying was made approximately two years after the Alter Rebbe passed away (on 24th Tevet, 1812). When compared with printed versions of the writings of the Baal HaTanya, the essays in the present manuscript contain many additions, omissions and textual variants.
At the beginning of the manuscript, Mahadura Kama of Igeret HaTeshuvah, a part of the Tanya (this version was unknown to the editors of the Mahadura Kama of the Tanya, Brooklyn, 1982), followed by two letters written by the Baal HaTanya after his release from prison in St. Petersburg (letters 2 and 4 of Igeret HaKodesh in the Tanya; letters 73 and 37 of his Igrot Kodesh). At the end of one of these letters appears a copying of the Alter Rebbe's signature, reading: "Shneur Zalman son of R. Baruch".
The present manuscript contains 25 homilies delivered by the Alter Rebbe during the 1790s-1800s, both in Liadi and in Liozna. Towards the end of the Bichel (p. 61b) is a copying of two additional letters written by the Alter Rebbe in 1803 (letters 30 and 1 of Igeret HaKodesh in the Tanya, letters 84 and 82 of his Igrot Kodesh).
On p. 61a, copying of a discourse by the Maggid of Mezeritch (Maggid Devarav LeYaakov, 2005 edition, no. 83, p. 30). To the best of our knowledge and research, the discourse "Lehavin Inyan Nefesh VeRuach", appearing in the present manuscript in leaves 59a-61b, has never been printed.
Some forty blank leaves of a later period are bound at the end of the manuscript, after leaf 64. On the first page is a copying in a different hand of a discourse by the Mitteler Rebbe (Maamarei Admor HaEmtza'i of Lubavitch, IX, p. 1589). The last two pages contain an index of the discourses and letters copied in the manuscript.
Ownership inscriptions and birth records from ca. 1820s-1830s inscribed on last page. Stamp of the "Bikur Cholim Hospital" in Jerusalem.
[1], 2-64 leaves (two columns per page on about half of leaves) + [40] blank leaves (on first page, copying of the discourse by the Mitteler Rebbe; and on last leaves, index and ownership inscriptions). Leaf 55 torn and mostly lacking. 18.5 cm. Good condition. Stains, including dark stains. Creases and light wear. Large marginal open tears to title page, repaired with paper, affecting illustrated frame. Tears from ink erosion, affecting frame of title page and text in some places. Worming, affecting text. Stamps. New binding, slightly worn.
Provenance: The Gross Family Collection, Tel Aviv, EE.011.007.
Shanah Tovah letter from Rebbe Yosef Yitzchak Schneerson, the Rebbe Rayatz of Lubavitch. Warsaw, 19th Elul, 1935.
Typewritten on the Rebbe Rayatz's official stationery, with his signature: "Yosef Yitzchak".
Sent to the dean of the Torat Emet yeshiva in Jerusalem, R. Moshe Aryeh Leib Shapiro: "Approaching the new year… I bless him and all his household… with a Ketivah VaChatimah Tovah for a good and sweet year, physically and spiritually".
R. Moshe Aryeh Leib Shapiro (1889-1972), dean of the Torat Emet yeshiva, rabbi and posek in the Beit Yisrael neighborhood in Jerusalem. He accompanied the Rebbe Rayatz on his visit to Jerusalem in 1929. Author of Nimukei Malbim and Tabeot Zahav on Ketzot HaChoshen.
[1] leaf, official stationery. 24.5 cm. Good condition. Folding marks, creases and light wear.
Shanah Tovah letter from Rebbe Yosef Yitzchak Schneerson, the Rebbe Rayatz of Lubavitch. Otwock, 23rd Elul, 1936.
Typewritten on the Rebbe Rayatz's official stationery, with his signature: "Yosef Yitzchak".
Sent to his relative R. Azriel Zelig Slonim: "Approaching the new year… I bless him and his household… with a Ketivah VaChatimah Tovah for a good and sweet year, physically and spiritually".
R. Azriel Zelig Slonim (1897-1972), a leading Chabad activist, member of Agudas Chasidei Chabad and director of Kollel Chabad. A founder of Lubavitch Women's Organization and the Beit Chanah institution, and a founder of Shikun Chabad in Jerusalem.
[1] leaf, official stationery. 24.5 cm. Good condition. Filing holes. Folding marks. Creases and light wear to margins. Marginal dampstain. Inscription on verso.
Letter from Rebbe Yosef Yitzchak Schneerson, the Rebbe Rayatz of Lubavitch. Brooklyn, New York, 5th Cheshvan, 1943.
Typewritten on the Rebbe Rayatz's official stationery, with his signature: "Yosef Yitzchak".
Sent to his relative R. Azriel Zelig Slonim: "I received his note on mentioning his name and the names of his household at its time, and I blessed him with a good and sweet year and for G-d to fulfill all the wishes of his heart for good and blessing, physically and spiritually – his relative and friend who seeks his welfare and blesses him".
R. Azriel Zelig Slonim (1897-1972), a leading Chabad activist, member of Agudas Chasidei Chabad and director of Kollel Chabad. A founder of Lubavitch Women's Organization and the Beit Chanah institution, and a founder of Shikun Chabad in Jerusalem.
[1] leaf, official stationery. 21.5 cm. Thin paper. Good condition. Filing holes. Folding marks. Creases and wear.
"Public-private" letter from Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the Lubavitcher Rebbe. Brooklyn, New York, 11th Nisan, 1959.
Typewritten on the Rebbe's official stationery, with his handwritten signature – "M.Schneersohn", with words added in his handwriting.
A "public-private" letter (an identical letter sent to several individuals), sent to R. Dov Ber Tkach. In the letter, the Rebbe offers a blessing for the upcoming Pesach festival: "Approaching the Festival of Matzot, the time of our freedom, I hereby offer my blessing for a kosher and joyous festival and for true freedom, freedom from physical worries and spiritual worries – from everything that obstructs service of G-d with happiness and joy; and to draw from this freedom and happiness the entire year…". At the end of the letter the Rebbe adds in his handwriting: "Respectfully and [with a festival blessing]".
On the margins of the letter the Rebbe writes that he received his book, Part IX of Kuntres HaShemot HeChadash, and adds in his handwriting: "Congratulations".
The recipient of the letter, R. Dov Ber Tkach (1889-1975), an important Chabad rabbi in Eretz Israel, founded and directed the Bnei Temimim Torah school and Achei Temimim yeshiva in Tel Aviv. Born in Ludmir (Volodymyr), he was one of the first students of the Ludmir yeshiva under the Karlin Chassid R. Chaim Mendel Kostromtzki, and later studied under R. Yoel Shurin in Zviahel, who declared him worthy of being a great posek. After his engagement to the daughter of R. Avraham Eliyahu Seltz of Lokachi he joined the Chabad movement and studied in the Tomchei Temimim yeshiva in Lubavitch. He was later appointed rabbi and mashpia in a Chabad community in Ludmir, where he would deliver Chassidic lectures in the Lubavitch shtiebel. He also raised funds for the Tomchei Temimim yeshiva in Warsaw. In the summer of 1932 he participated in the arrangements for the visit of the Rebbe Rayatz in Ludmir. In 1935 he immigrated to Eretz Israel and served as Rabbi of the Kontrovitz and Ahavat Tzion synagogues in Tel Aviv. In 1947 he traveled to the United States on behalf of the Rebbe Rayatz to raise funds for Chabad institutions in Tel Aviv. He is known for authoring Kuntres HaShemot HeChadash (twelve parts) – an important index of names for scribes of marriage and divorce documents. In addition, he authored Tarach Amudei Or on the 613 mitzvot (eight parts), Seder Yemot Olam on history, and more.
[1] leaf. Rebbe's official stationery. 21.5 cm. Good-fair condition. Folding marks and creases. Many stains and wear. Inscription on verso (in pencil).
"Public-private" letter from Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the Lubavitcher Rebbe. Brooklyn, New York, 11th Nisan, 1972.
Typewritten on the Rebbe's official stationery, with his handwritten signature – "M.Schneersohn", with words added in his handwriting.
A "public-private" letter (an identical letter sent to several individuals), sent to R. Naftali Gluskin and members of the class for study of Chassidut opened by him in Ramat Sharon. In his letter, the Rebbe offers a blessing for the upcoming Pesach festival: "Approaching the Festival of Matzot, the time of our freedom… I hereby offer my blessing for a kosher and joyous festival and for true freedom, freedom from physical worries and spiritual worries – from everything that obstructs service of G-d with happiness and joy; and to draw from this freedom and happiness the entire year…". At the end of the letter the Rebbe adds in his handwriting: "Respectfully and [with a festival blessing]".
On the margins of the letter the Rebbe offers his thanks for the blessing he received for his birthday on 11th Nisan: "Congratulations for the blessings. And what you said is already stated in the Torah: 'And I (G-d, the source of blessings) will bless those who bless you, ' with the blessing of G-d, Whose addition is greater than the principal".
R. Naftali Gluskin (d. 1947), a student of the Tomchei Temimim Lubavitch yeshiva in Kremenchuk (1918-1919) and a disciple of the Rabbinical Seminary in the Chassidic town Nevel (1925-1927). Married Rebbetzin Tamar Ita, daughter of R. Shimon Moshe Diskin Rabbi of Lyakhavichy, a close friend of Rebbetzin Chanah, mother of the Lubavitcher Rebbe. In 1944-1945, when Chanah was widowed of her husband R. Levi Yitzchak in Almaty, Tamar Ita devotedly stood by her side, despite the risk involved. The Rebbetzin wrote to her in one of her letters: "I well remember how you related to me… at the time nobody dared to stand within my four cubits". R. Naftali and his wife Tamar Ita left Russia in 1946. At first they stayed in the Wegscheid DP camp in Austria, and they later moved to France, where they founded educational institutions for Chabad girls. In 1949 they immigrated to Israel and settled in Ramat HaSharon, later moving to Bnei Brak where he worked as a shochet. R. Naftali disseminated Chassidut and his wife Tamar Ita continued to work as an educator, and she was a founder of the Beit Rivkah foundation in Kfar Chabad.
[1] leaf, official stationery of the Rebbe. 28 cm. Good condition. Folding marks and creases. Stains and light wear.
Letter from Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the Lubavitcher Rebbe. Brooklyn, New York, 13th Nisan 1981.
Typewritten on the Rebbe's official stationery, with his signature – "M. Schneersohn".
A "public-private" letter (an identical letter sent to several individuals), for the upcoming festival of Pesach. The Rebbe offers his blessing for a kosher and happy holiday and for true freedom, both physical and spiritual.
In the margins of the letter, the Rebbe thanks his correspondent for a blessing he had sent him for his birthday (11th Nisan), and responds with another blessing.
[1] leaf, official stationery. Approx. 22 cm. Good condition. Folding marks.