Bidspirit auction | Montefiore’s Chumash! Chumash Tikkun Sofrim

Montefiore’s Chumash! Chumash Tikkun Sofrim – Amsterdam, 1727 * A magnificent copy belonging to Sir Moses Montefiore. A meticulously edited and accurate Chumash intended for sofrim writing a Sefer Torah, including the Five Megillos and haftarahs for the entire year, with a separate title page, and at the end a calendar table covering one hundred years (1730–1830). At the beginning of the Chumash are two title pages. The first is one of the most beautifully ornamented title pages ever produced by the printing presses of Amsterdam. The title page is an artistic copper engraving composed of framed miniature illustrations from Tanach stories, together with depictions of angels. Affixed to the inner side is a splendid bookplate bearing the aristocratic emblem of the Montefiore family — a lion and a deer holding banners inscribed with the word “Jerusalem.” On the second title page and at the end of the sefer appears the stamp of the yeshiva “Ohel Moshe V’Yehudis” in the city of Ramsgate, England. Sir Moses Montefiore (1784–1885) was a British nobleman and philanthropist who devoted his life to helping and assisting his oppressed Jewish brothers and sisters around the world. Even at an advanced age, he traveled numerous times to Eretz Yisrael, Russia, and Morocco to intercede in royal courts and save Jews from blood libels and various decrees. Amsterdam, 1727. Printed in the printing press of the dayan Rabbi Moshe Frankfurt and under his supervision. Page Count: [1], 367, [1]; [1], 118, [3] leaves. Condition : Good. Antique wood-and-leather binding with remnants of clasps. Spine has been restored.