Desk clock of Rebbetzin Nechama Dina Schneersohn, wife of Rebbe Rayatz of Lubavitch.
Semca desk clock, Switzerland. Clock frame studded with rhinestones.
Letter of authenticity enclosed (handwritten note, in English), signed in Hebrew by her daughter Rebbetzin Chana Gurary (1899-1991), eldest daughter of Rebbe Rayatz: "I hereby gift… my mother's Semca jeweled clock watch she always used in the time she was in the United States". Dated – 10th September 1989.

Rebbetzin Nechama Dina Schneersohn (1882-1971), wife of the Rebbe Rayatz, was the daughter of R. Avraham Schneersohn of Chişinău (Kishinev), son of Rebbe Yisrael Noach of Nizhyn, son of the Tzemach Tzedek of Lubavitch. She wed the Rayatz in Elul 1897, and they bore three daughters – the eldest Rebbetzin Chana Gurary, the second Rebbetzin Chaya Mushka Schneersohn, and the youngest Shaina (Sonia) Horenstein (perished in the Holocaust). She was devoted to and involved in the monumental activities of her husband. After her husband was imprisoned by the communists in 1927, she wisely and courageously steered the procedures which led to his release, at the risk of her own life. After the passing of her husband in 1950, she published a sharp letter protesting the attempt to remove her son-in-law R. Shemaryahu Gurary from his positions as head of various Chabad institutions.
After her death, she was eulogized with the following description: "Her personality contained the traditional pious Chassidic Rebbetzin, hand in hand with an intelligent woman who understands the spirit of changing times".

Approx. 7.5X7.5 cm. Good condition. Mechanism not tested (clock appears to work).

Sunwatch and compass which R. Menachem Mendel Schneersohn (later the Lubavitcher Rebbe) gifted to his nephew R. Shalom Ber (Barry) Gurary, in 1945.
Made by Ansonia Clock Co., Brooklyn NY, 1920s.
Combination sundial and compass, placed in a brass case. Printed inside the top cover is a chart listing 42 cities in the United States and their respective degrees latitude, longitude and clock time in minutes to add or subtract from sun time. A teaching-aid, used extensively by Boy Scouts.
Letter of authenticity enclosed (handwritten note, in English), signed in Hebrew by R. Shalom Ber (Barry) Gurary (1923-2005), grandson of Rebbe Rayatz (son of his daughter Rebbetzin Chana and her husband R. Shemaryahu Gurary – the Rashag): "I hereby gift… the compass clock which my uncle gave me as a present in 1945". Dated – 1st June 1989.

Approx. 8X5 cm. Good condition. Mechanism not examined (appears to work at superficial glance). Abrasions and scratches to chart and case.

Sefer Maggid Devarav LeYaakov, Likutei Amarim, by the Maggid Rabbi Dov Ber of Mezeritch (Mezhirichi). [Lviv: 1797].

Title page states: "the book Maggid Devarav LeYaakov [last letters of the book's name are emphasized on the title page, alluding to the name of the author, R. Dov], selected discourses… pure sayings... hearken to the words of the king... every month and every week... from the great and holy Torah scholar.... R. Dov Ber, who was a preacher in Mezeritch and other communities…".
The book was brought to print by R. Shlomo of Lutsk (author of Divrat Shlomo), close disciple and relative of the Maggid of Mezeritch. R. Shlomo wrote two comprehensive forewords to the book, which are renowned in the Chassidic world. The first portrays the elevated stature of his teachers, the Baal Shem Tov and the Maggid of Mezeritch, the Divine Inspiration which rested upon them and the lofty levels they reached.

4, [1], 4-31 ff. Approx. 23 cm. Good condition. Stains, including dampstains. Wear. Open marginal tears to title page and few other pages, not affecting text, repaired with paper. Worming, with minor damage to text in some places. Library stamps. Inscriptions. New leather binding.
Erroneous date on title page; date of publication according to the "Bibliography of the Hebrew Book 1470-1960".
PLEASE NOTE: Item's description was shortened in translation. For further information, please refer to Hebrew text.

Torah Or, Vol. I – Chassidic essays on Bereshit and Shemot, Chanukah and Purim, by Rebbe Shneur Zalman of Liadi – the Baal HaTanya. Kopust (Kopys): Shabtai ben Simeon [Slavin], 1836. First edition. Two title pages; parts of title pages printed in red ink.

Gloss on leaf 28/2. Ownership inscriptions to title page: "Shaul Ginzburg of Mir"; "Shaul son of R. A. Sender Ginzburg of Kopust, in Mir" (Hebrew).
R. Shaul son of Alexander Sender Ginzburg (ca. 1785-1865), disciple of Rebbe Shneur Zalman of Liadi, Baal HaTanya and Shulchan Aruch, Great-grandfather of Zalman Shazar, the State of Israel's 3rd president (Shazar's mother, Sarah, was the daughter of R. Moshe Ginzburg of Mir (ca. 1820-1912), son of R. Shaul Ginzburg of Kopust-Mir). According to his great-grandson Shazar, R. Ginzburg followed the instructions of his Rabbi the Baal HaTanya, and established the first Chassidic Minyan in the city of Mir, a stronghold of the Misnagdim (see [Hebrew]: Sefer Mir, Jerusalem 1963, pp. 263-264; Nassi and Chassid, Kfar Chabad, 1999; p. 31; Entsiklopedyah le-halutse ha-yishuv u-vonav, vol. 3, p. 1111).

Sefer Torah Or is a fundamental work of Chassidut Cahabd. It was written from teachings heard directly from Baal HaTanya by his brother, R. Yehuda Leib of Janowiec, author of "She'erit Yehuda", and was edited by his disciple and grandson, Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneersohn, the Tzemach Tzedek of Lubavitch. It was among the last Jewish books to be printed in Tsarist Russia before all Jewish printing houses were shut down by the authorities in 1836 ("the printing decree"), the result of a malicious Maskilic "informing". From then on, only two printing houses were allowed to operate, in Vilna and Zhitomir, both under strict supervision by the Tsarist government.

[1], 167, [1] ff. Approx. 21 cm. Fair-good condition. Stains. Severe ink stains to upper margins of title page and additional leaves. Open tears and worming to some leaves, affecting text, repaired with tape. Tape reinforcement to title page margins. Stamps and inscriptions. Fine new leather binding.

Avodat HaLevi, Chassidic essays on the Torah portions and festivals, Haftarot, Megillot, letters, selections on various topics of Kabbalah and Chassidut, and responsa, by Rebbe Aaron HaLevi Segal Horowitz of Staroselye. [Lviv]-Warsaw, [1842-1866]. First edition. Complete set – four parts in four volumes.
* Vol. I (Bereshit-Vayikra, festivals and Megillot – Lviv, 1842): [2], 93; [1], 76; 56, [1] ff. ([1] final leaf – omissions from Parasht Miketz; originally bound at the end of vol. IV).
* Vol. II (Selections and responsa – Lviv, 1842): [1], 35, [2], 45-106 ff.
* Vol. III (Bamidbar – Warsaw, 1866): [2], 31, 33-76 ff.
* Vol. IV (Devarim – Warsaw, 1866): [2], 62; 18, [4] ff. (corrections and omissions leaves, bound at the end of the volume).

Approx. 23.5 cm. Overall good condition. Stains and minor dampstains. Minor creases. Minor tears, some repaired with paper, slightly affecting text. Few inked stamps. New, matching leather bindings.
PLEASE NOTE: Item descriptions were shortened in translation. For further information, please refer to Hebrew text.