Bidspirit auction | Responsa Mayim Rabbim – All

Responsa Mayim Rabbim – All Four Parts. Amsterdam, 1737 – With the Rare Approbations Leaf. The Bayonne Eruv Controversy - Responsa Mayim Rabbim, by the Gaon Rabbi Raphael Meldola. Amsterdam, 1737. All four parts of the responsa complete, arranged according to the four sections of the Shulchan Aruch, with a separate title page for each part. An important copy containing the rare additional approbations leaf, which was added only to some copies after the book had already been printed. This leaf contains a later and particularly interesting approbation by the emissaries of Safed, dated Rosh Chodesh Cheshvan 1737 – later than the year of publication stated in the book. The work also contains an important series of responsa concerning the controversy over the eruv in the city of Bayonne, previously printed separately in the pamphlet Parashat HaIbur, Amsterdam, 1734. Approbations by the Leading Rabbis of Amsterdam and Italy – Approbation of the Author of “Ma’aseh Rokeach” At the beginning of the volume are numerous approbations by leading rabbis of Amsterdam and Italy, all dated 1737. Especially noteworthy is the approbation of the Gaon and Kabbalist Rabbi Elazar Rokeach, author of Ma’aseh Rokeach, who is introduced with exceptionally exalted titles: “a holy mouth… the renowned Chassid.” Rabbi Elazar Rokeach was serving at the time as Rabbi of the Ashkenazi community of Amsterdam, where he was held in great esteem. His approbation to the present work was thus issued during his tenure in the city and is of particular interest both for its content and for the exceptional honorific titles bestowed upon him by his contemporaries. The Rare Approbations Leaf – Added After Printing This copy is of particular bibliographical importance due to the presence of an additional approbations leaf not found in all copies. The leaf contains an approbation by the emissaries of Safed, Rabbi Chaim Yaakov [son of Rabbi Yaakov David] and Rabbi Meir di Segura, dated Rosh Chodesh Cheshvan 1737. This date is later than the year 1737 indicated as the year of publication. It appears that the approbation was received only after the printing of the book had already been completed, and that the author subsequently inserted the leaf into copies that remained in his possession. Consequently, this leaf is lacking in many copies of the edition, and its presence here is an important feature of the bibliographical completeness of this copy. The “Parashat HaIbur” Controversy – The Eruv of Bayonne In the Orach Chaim section, responsa 34–38 comprise a series of discussions concerning a complex and practical halachic question in the laws of eruvin: how carrying on Shabbat could be permitted in a city whose population was overwhelmingly non-Jewish, specifically the city of Bayonne. These responsa had already appeared prior to the publication of Mayim Rabbim, in a separate pamphlet entitled Parashat HaIbur, Amsterdam, 1734, and were subsequently incorporated into the present work. This episode lends the volume additional importance as a source for a contemporary halachic controversy and for the methods employed by Sephardic sages in Western Europe in addressing questions of eruvin and urban structure. An early ownership signature appears on the first title page: “Tzvi Hirsch…” All four parts are bound together, with a separate title page for each part. Without the leaves in Portuguese, which are absent from most copies. An important copy of Responsa Mayim Rabbim, complete in all four parts, containing the rare approbations leaf added after completion of the printing, the notable approbation of the author of Ma’aseh Rokeach, and the responsa relating to the Bayonne eruv controversy. [5], 53, [1]; [1], 71; [1], 29; [1], 55 leaves. 30 cm. Very good condition. Minor age stains. New binding.