Bidspirit auction | A Bomberg Press Masterpiece Tanach.

A Bomberg Press Masterpiece Tanach. Venice, 1525 Beautiful – in Its Original Binding * Among the flagship undertakings of the famed Bomberg press in Venice were the pioneering editions of the Talmud and the Tanach. The present edition of the Tanach, emerging from Bomberg’s illustrious printing house, was executed with unmatched care and distinction: printed on thick, high-quality white paper, with elegant typography, embellished borders, and — above all — uncompromising precision and clarity. In addition to the general title page, three sectional title pages were issued: for the Neviim Rishonim, Neviim Achronim, and Kesuvim. The text is printed in a single-column format throughout, with the exception of Sefer Tehilim, which appears in two columns. At the head of each book appear decorated initials or elaborate border designs. A complete and outstanding copy preserved in its original binding — heavy wooden boards covered in leather with iron clasps. Housed in a 19th-century French leather-covered wooden case. A Bomberg Tanach in such exceptional condition is rarely found outside national libraries or the most distinguished private libraries. From the distinguished library of the renowned American Jewish banker Mortimer Loeb Schiff (1877–1931), a national leader of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). His daughter, Dorothy Schiff, was a prominent businesswoman and the owner and publisher of the New York Post from 1939 to 1976. A striking red-and-gold leather ex-libris bearing his name appears on the inner cover. Daniel Bomberg printed four editions of this Tanach during the 16th century: in the years 1517, 1521, 1525, and 1533. The present copy is from the second printing, completed in 1521 (as indicated by the original colophon), but reissued in 1525 with an updated title page, a practice confirmed by multiple known copies and noted by bibliographer M. Habermann (The Printer Daniel Bomberg and His Publications, no. 94). The colophon is historically significant and emotionally stirring. Bomberg shares his monumental ambition to publish both the first complete edition of the Talmud (1520–1523) and the Rif (1521–1522) — works printed concurrently with this Tanach. He writes: “Printed anew … in the month of Elul, 1521, in the name of Daniel Bomberg and in his house. May Hashem grant us the merit to complete the entire Talmud, as well as the great Sefer HaRif, in accordance with the will of our master, the aforementioned Daniel — for until this day we have completed twenty-five masechtos of the Talmud and twelve fascicles from the work of the Rif.” From this historic statement, we learn the precise number of masechtos completed in the first Bomberg Talmud edition (1520–1523): twenty-five masechtos by Elul 1521. Venice, 1521–1525. Bomberg Press . Printed by the brothers, sons of Baruch Edel Kind. Page count: 528, [1] leaves. Size: 21 cm. Decorated initials or splendid borders appear at the beginning of each book. The binding has undergone conservation for preservation.