Bidspirit auction | The Most Foundational Kabbalistic Prayer

The Most Foundational Kabbalistic Prayer Book Shaarei Tzion Venice, 1701. Master Edition. * A compilation of prayers and tikkunim, including the Order of Tikkun Chatzos with kabbalistic intentions and customs, edited by the kabbalist Rabbi Nosson Neta Hannover. The sefer Shaarei Tzion was very well received and became one of the most widely used sifrei tefillah. In the first two hundred years since its first printing (in 1662), over one hundred different editions have appeared! In this edition, two new additions were included for the first time, which from then on were printed in most subsequent editions: A – Seder Tikkun Seudah, based on the words of ”chassidim and men of deed in Tzfas and Yerushalayim” B – Sefer Yetzirah, attributed to Avraham Avinu, ”edited by the man of G-d the Arizal” Early editions of Shaarei Tzion are exceedingly rare, due to their popularity and constant use. A miniature edition – only 10.1 cm! The author, Rabbi Nosson Neta Hanover (d. 1683) , was a disciple of the holy kabbalist Rabbi Shimshon of Ostropoli. Having survived the Chmielnicki massacres (1648–1649), he later settled in Italy, where he met the kabbalist Rabbi Chaim HaKohen of Aram Tzovah, a disciple of Rabbi Chaim Vital (“and from him I received exalted wisdom”). There he also met the great kabbalist Rabbi Nosson Shapira, author of Matzas Shimurim, who had brought with him from Yerushalayim “bundles upon bundles of the writings of the Arizal.” Based on their words and manuscripts, Rabbi Hanover compiled the prayers of this sefer (see his introduction). Venice, 1701. Page Count: 124 leaves. Size: 10.1 cm. Condition: Good; minor repairs to the opening leaves, a few missing words on leaves 2 and 64. New elegant leather binding. It is noteworthy that, according to the bibliographic records of the various editions of Shaarei Tzion, the present one is the first miniature edition of the sefer as a standalone sefer. It was preceded only by two editions printed together with a siddur. Many later editions were likewise issued in pocket format. _________________________________ The Early “Master Editions” of Shaarei Tzion Because Shaarei Tzion served as a practical and much-used prayer book, numerous revisions and adaptations were made from edition to edition, with additions and textual adjustments. Among the editions printed during the late 17th and early 18th centuries, there are three main “master editions” that differ from one another, while most later editions are essentially based upon the ones before them: (a) Prague, 1662 – the first edition. An incomplete copy is preserved in the British Library (possibly the only surviving one). (b) Amsterdam, 1671–1672 – includes many additional prayers and extensive textual changes. (c) Venice, 1701 – the present edition, featuring the new additions of Tikun Seudah and Sefer Yetzirah. Most of the later editions followed its form.