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Manuscript – Commentary of Rabbi Yitzchak Monteson of Sicily to Bechinat Olam – Reggio di Calabria, 1502 – Lost Work Now Rediscovered - Manuscript, commentary of R. Yitzchak Monteson to Bechinat Olam by R. Yedaiah HaPenini Bedersi. Reggio di Calabria, 11th Kislev 1502. Sephardic semi-cursive (running) script. Commentary copied at center of pages, with copying (tending towards semi-cursive) of corresponding paragraphs from Bechinat Olam in margins. The present manuscript is a complete copying of the commentary of R. Yitzchak Monteson of Sicily, an unprinted commentary that was lost and only recently rediscovered. At the beginning of the manuscript is the author's introduction: ”Says Yitzchak son of Avraham called Monteson Sephardi, residing here in Syracuse on the island of Sicily: Whereas I saw the young men enjoying this composition to the point of knowing it by heart – 'they honored it with their mouths and lips but their heart was distant from it, and their knowledge of it was out of habit, and their heart was like a closed book', without paying attention to its inner meaning and the form it aims at, and it remained as indescribable matter without form. Moreover, as this composition contains many topics that appear to be synonymous, as if they all mean the same thing, while this is not the case, but they each have their own meaning. They also thought the same about many sections, but it is inappropriate to take the sections as happenstance. And I, the youngest of my father's household, took care that it not be concealed, to show the form which is the author's intention, section by section until fully explaining its meaning…”. On p. 33b, at end of commentary, colophon of copyist with location and date of copying: ”Fully completed, praise be to the eternal G-d, Wednesday, 11th Kislev, here in Reggio di Calabria, in the year [1502]”. R. Yitzchak Monteson's commentary is mentioned only once, in the introduction to the commentary of R. Moshe son of R. Shem Tov ibn Habib (of Lisbon, residing in Otranto, Italy), printed in Bechinat Olam, Constantinople 1520. Another anonymous commentary preceded that of R. Moshe ibn Habib, in Bechinat Olam, Soncino 1484. The introduction to R. Moshe ibn Habib's commentary is written in the form of a letter to a student who had asked him to explain the work. In this introduction, he mentions the commentary printed earlier in Soncino, and states that apart from another commentary by R. Yitzchak Monteson, there are no commentaries to Bechinat Olam: ”I testify… that I saw no commentary to this book… apart from what you have by R. Yitzchak Monteson and the one recently printed, which is negligible in size and quality…”. R. Moshe ibn Habib's commentary was reprinted in Ferrara, 1552, alongside another commentary by R. Yosef Franses. Over the years, these commentaries were reprinted several times, but R. Yitzchak Monteson's remained unknown, leaving behind no traces. While R. Yitzchak Monteson is mentioned in Kore HaDorot as a commentator on Bechinat Olam, the basis for this is only the abovementioned introduction by R. Moshe ibn Habib. Scholars and bibliographers unsuccessfully attempted to recover the commentary (see for instance: Isaac Benjacob, Otzar HaSefarim, entry Bechinat Olam). The existence of a manuscript with R. Yitzchak Monteson's commentary, specifically the present manuscript, first became known in the late 19th century. It is documented in Ernest Renan and Adolf Neubauer, Les Écrivains Juifs Français du XIVe Siècle, Paris 1893, pp. 41-42. They write that the scholar Abraham Harkavy located and purchased a manuscript of the work, citing the above extract from the introduction Harkavy sent them, as well as the colophon of the present manuscript (on Harkavy's manuscript collection, see: Benjamin Richler, Guide to Hebrew Manuscript Collections, Jerusalem 2014, p. 91). In his Chadashim Gam Yeshanim, pp. 233, 271, Harkavy mentions the present manuscript and references Renan-Neubauer. No biographical details are known of the author, R. Yitzchak Monteson. According to his introduction, he resided in Syracuse, Sicily. His name suggests a personal or family background in Monteson, France. To the best of our knowledge and research, there is no other extant copy of R. Yitzchak Monteson's commentary. On the last leaf is an ethical-philosophical inscription (unidentified), in cursive Spanish. The leaf continues with a list of names, including members of the Chamtzi and Antabi families, and other inscriptions. [34] leaves. 20 cm. Fair-good condition. Stains, including dampstains and dark stains. Tears and wear. Fading of ink or slightly damaged text in several places. Large open tears to margins of several leaves, repaired with paper filling. New leather binding.