Auction 3 1st Anniversary Auction - Important Hebrew Books | Manuscripts
By Royal Auction House
Jan 17, 2022
1555 Route 37, Toms River, NJ 08755, United States
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LOT 14:

Rare: Sefer Nitzachon, Altdorf 1644. First Edition. An Impressive Copy.

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Rare: Sefer Nitzachon, Altdorf 1644. First Edition. An Impressive Copy.

A beautiful, complete copy of Sefer Niztachon, authored by R. Yom Tov Lipmann Mulhausen, a 15th century Rabbi and Kabbalist. In addition to being fluent in Latin and well versed in the New Testament - virtually unheard of in his day - he was a well respected Rabbi. R. Yisroel Isserlin - Terumas HaDeshen - mentions him in a responsum (Terumas HaDeshen - Pesakim U'Kesavim, Simman 24). 

R. Lipmann wrote Sefer to deal with the acute problems of conversion to Christianity among German Jews. The work consists of 354 paragraphs, the number of days in the lunar year. Each paragraph, with the exception of the last eight, begins with a passage of the TaNach, upon which the author bases his argument. Thus his arguments rest upon 346 passages taken from all the books of the TaNach. The last eight paragraphs contain his dispute with the convert Peter.

In the introduction, he relates that he divided the work into seven parts to represent the seven days of the week. The part for the first day contains the arguments against Christians; the second day against the Karaite interpretation of the Bible; the remaining five days contain several interpretations of obscure Biblical passages that are likely to mislead students, such as the reasons for the commandments. Exactly when he wrote this work is unknown, however he must have written it before 1410, for he expressed a hope that the Mashiach would arrive in that year. 

This first edition was printed by Christian Hebraist Theodoricus Hackspan, who upon learning that a Rabbi in Schnaittach possessed a copy of the manuscript, obtained an interview with him for a debate, and when the rabbi took down his copy to consult, had it snatched from his hands, to be then copied and printed. It is this copy which forms the first edition. 

Printed with two title pages, one copper engraving in Hebrew, and another in Latin. This copy includes the second Latin section, lacking in many copies. 

An attractive fresh copy printed on thick white paper. Bound in original vellum binding. A copy in a condition such as this is extremely rare. 

16, 512, 24 pp. 

Vinograd, Altdorf 1.
Stefansky Hebrew Classics 505. 



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