Bidspirit auction | Meira D’Chaya – Livorno, 1792 The

Meira D’Chaya – Livorno, 1792 The Personal Copy of the Great Gaon Rabbi Chaim Berlin zt”l – of Whom the Rabbis of His Generation Trembled in Awe - “Chaim Berlin, son of the Gaon Admor the Netziv zt”l, formerly Av Beit Din and Rosh Metivta of Volozhin, and presently in the holy city of Jerusalem, may it be rebuilt and established.” (From his personal ownership stamp on the title page.) Sefer Meira D’Chaya – novellae on the entire Talmud and on the Rambam, authored by the great Tunisian sage Rabbi Mordechai Baruch Carvallo zt”l, one of the leading scholars of Tunis and a foremost disciple of Rabbi Yitzchak Lumbroso, author of Zera Yitzchak. The author was known for his penetrating intellect and brilliant analysis; his work also contains valuable insights on the weekly Torah portions. Livorno, 1792 [תקנ״ב]. A very rare and only edition, printed in Livorno in 1792. The book is known today almost exclusively through later facsimile reprints; original printed copies are exceptionally scarce. The Personal Copy of Rabbi Chaim Berlin A particularly handsome and complete copy, preserved in superb condition. Rich, dark paper, clean and straight pages with wide, untrimmed original margins, retaining their original color. Bound in an impressive half-leather antique binding, entirely original, with raised gilt decorations along the spine — still gleaming brightly after over 250 years. A museum-worthy item, suitable for the most distinguished Torah or Judaica collections. Throughout the book, and especially on the title page, appear multiple ownership stamps of the illustrious Gaon Rabbi Chaim Berlin zt”l, eldest son of the Netziv of Volozhin and his successor as head of the legendary yeshiva. Rabbi Chaim Berlin served as Rabbi of Volozhin, Moscow, Kobrin, and finally Jerusalem, where he succeeded Rabbi Shmuel Salant as Chief Rabbi. His stamp here reads: “Chaim Berlin, son of the Gaon Admor the Netziv zt”l, formerly Av Beit Din and Rosh Metivta of Volozhin, and presently in the holy city of Jerusalem.” Handwritten Annotations In several places, including the title page, appear at least two marginal notes, seemingly in Rabbi Chaim Berlin’s own handwriting – one listing the Talmudic tractates discussed in the work (about twelve words), and another within the text itself. Although no formal graphological comparison has been conducted, stylistic evidence strongly suggests that these are indeed autograph notations by Rabbi Chaim Berlin. Rabbi Chaim Berlin (1832–1913) One of the greatest Torah sages of his generation and among the most prominent figures in Lithuanian and Jerusalemite rabbinic leadership. He served as Rosh Yeshivat Volozhin, Rabbi of Moscow, Rabbi of Kobrin, and later as Chief Rabbi of Jerusalem, recognized as the spiritual successor of Rabbi Shmuel Salant zt”l. His contemporaries described him as: “A man before whom even the greatest rabbis trembled.” Renowned for his profound scholarship, humility, and spiritual insight, he was revered as both a towering scholar and a man of holiness and prophetic intuition. A rare and exceptionally important copy, directly connected to one of the most exalted and influential Torah leaders of the late Lithuanian and early Jerusalem generations. [1], 224 leaves. 29 cm. Condition: very good; elegant and original antique binding in excellent preservation.