Bidspirit auction | Ketzot HaChoshen – First Edition.

Ketzot HaChoshen – First Edition. Lemberg (Lvov), 1788–1796 [תקמ”ח–תקנ”ו]. With Scholarly Handwritten Glosses - Two rare volumes of the first edition of Ketzot HaChoshen, the monumental halachic work by Rabbi Aryeh Leib HaKohen Heller, one of the foremost rabbinic authorities of the late 18th century. This foundational commentary on Choshen Mishpat (Jewish civil law) became a central pillar of Talmudic study and halachic analysis, later printed alongside Shulchan Aruch in almost every major edition, together with Netivot HaMishpat and Shev Shma’ata. The work was printed during the author’s lifetime, as noted on the title page: “Authored and edited by the distinguished and complete sage, our teacher and master Rabbi Aryeh Leib HaKohen, may he live forever” — and it was this work that earned him the enduring title “Ba’al Ketzot HaChoshen.” Its publication brought the author wide renown throughout the rabbinic world, and the book remains a cornerstone of advanced yeshiva learning to this day. At the end of the first volume appears Kuntres HaSfeikot (“Treatise on Doubts”), written by the author’s brother, Rabbi Yehuda HaKohen, author of Terumat HaKeri. Bibliographic details: Volume I: Lemberg, 1788 [תקמ”ח]. Sections 1–132. [2], 129; 15 ff. including Panim le-Shulchan Aruch. Contains one handwritten scholarly note on leaf 87. Very good condition; light age stains and small paper reinforcements to outer margins. Volume II: Lemberg, 1796 [תקנ”ו]. Sections 133–424. [2], 64, 67–111 leaves. Lacking [3] index leaves at the end. Moderate condition; minor artistic restoration to title page; a few initial and final leaves with defects affecting text, mostly covered with paper repairs. Some age staining. The second volume contains long and early scholarly handwritten glosses, evidently by a learned contemporary reader, reflecting deep engagement with the text. Includes early ownership signatures. Reference: Stefansky, Sifrei Yesod, no. 185. A very scarce first edition of one of the most influential and revered halachic works in Jewish legal literature.