Yair Nativ – Signature of the Collector and Grammarian Rabbi Shlomo of Dubna. Kushta, [1718]. First Edition

Yair Nativ – Signature of the Collector and Grammarian Rabbi Shlomo of Dubna. Kushta, [1718]. First Edition

Sefer Yair Nativ elucidating the order of giving a Gett, 23 Simanim. By the Gaon Rabbi Avraham Halevi Av Beit Din of Egypt, author of Ginat Veradim. Edited by Rabbi Chaim Tawil, the author's son-in-law.

On the title page of the book, the signature of the grammarian and book-collector Rabbi Shlomo of Dubna, the confidante of HaGra and Moshe Mendelson.

Avraham ben Mordechai Halevi (ca. 1650-1712): One of the rabbis of Egypt in the 17th century. Author of Shut Ginat Veradim and Sefer Han Hamelech.

Rabbi Shlomo of Dubna (1739-1813): a disciple of Rabbi Shlomo of Chelm the author of Mirkevet Hamishneh. Published many books, his and others'. From 1767 to 1772, he lived in Amsterdam due to his interest in the collections of Hebrew books the town had to offer and to his occupation as a book collector and seller. A list of the books he owned, which he wrote in 1771, contained approx. three hundred and fifty titles. In Amsterdam, he also became close to a group of early members of the Enlightenment Movement, which included David Franco-Mendes and Naftali Hirz Wessely.

Later, he moved to Berlin and earned his living as a private teacher of the Jewish community. There he became the Hebrew teacher of Moshe Mendelson's son, Yosef. Was famed for his knowledge of the Bible, the Mesorah and grammar and was even asked by HaGra of Vilna to study the Mesorah of the books of Nevi'im and Ketuvim (Ptuchot and Stumot, Chaserot and Yeterot) – see the evidence of Rabbi Pesach Pinfer of Vilna (in his article in the Beit Vaad Lachachamim Journal, Leeds 1902 and in his book Mesorat HaTorah Vehaneviim, Vilna 1906). Was one of the editors of Moshe Mendelson's commentary on Chumash Bereshit. Later, however, he decided to stop working with Mendelson and publish his own Chumashim, which were approbated by leading contemporary rabbis (Rabbi Shmuel Av Beit Din of Vilna; Rabbi Chaim of Volozhin and Rabbi Zalmale of Volozhin, HaGra's disciples; the Geonim of Vilna, Shklow and Slutz; the Geonim of the Kloiz of Brod; the rabbis of Lviv, Berlin and Frankfurt and more. The list of approbators was published by R.D. Kamnetzky Shlita in Yeshurun 8-10, see there).

Kushta, [1718]. The Press of Yonah ben Yaakov Ashkenazi. First edition.

20 leaves. Very good condition. Thick quality paper. Wide margins. Fine, ancient half-leather binding.

Yaari, Kushta 293.