Auction 105 Books | Letters and Manuscripts | Esther Scrolls and Jewish Ceremonial Art
Portrait of Rabbi Shlomo Shalem, Rabbi in Bulgaria and Portuguese Community of Amsterdam – The Netherlands, 1762 – Hand-Colored Engraving
Opening: $500
Sold for: $750
Including buyer's premium
Portrait of R. Shlomo Shalem, a rabbi of Bulgaria and of the Portuguese community in Amsterdam. Engraving by Charles-Ange Boily, after an illustration by Benjamin Samuel Bolomey. [The Netherlands, 1762]. Hand-colored copy.
Portrait of R. Shlomo Shalem, aged 44, holding his book Shoneh Halachot, surrounded by a caption in Latin and with a caption in Hebrew below.
A floral border is mounted on the margins of the engraving (pieces of paper cut and colored green).
R. Shlomo Shalem (1708-1781), born in Adrianople (present-day Edirne, Turkey) and raised in Salonika (present-day Thessaloniki, Greece). Served as rabbi in various cities in Bulgaria before being appointed Rabbi of Sofia, the capital city. He later traveled to the west for health reasons, serving temporarily as Rabbi of Belgrade, and eventually reaching Amsterdam, where he was appointed rabbi of the Portuguese community and published his Shoneh Halachot, serving there for about twenty years until his passing. Even in his rabbinic office in Amsterdam he would include his connection to Belgrade as part of his signature, and this is also mentioned in the caption of the present portrait.
29X38 cm; matted: approx. 50X58 cm. Fair condition. Stains and wear. Marginal open tears.
The engraving was previously auctioned by Kedem, Auction 58, Lot 97.
Portraits, Prints and Graphic Works
Portraits, Prints and Graphic Works