Bidspirit auction | Mikraos Gedolos Aderes Eliyahu The

Mikraos Gedolos Aderes Eliyahu The Vilna Gaon’s Commentary on the Torah Giant Format. Dubrovna, 1804.  * Chamishah Chumshei Torah Mikraos Gedolos in a giant format, measuring 43.5 cm in height! Includes numerous commentaries, several of which appear here in print for the very first time (see details below). This edition is especially well-known because it includes the Vilna Gaon’s commentary Aderes Eliyahu, which was printed here for the very first time. The commentary was published just six years after the Vilna Gaon’s passing, and part of it was likely printed directly from the Vilna Gaon’s own autograph manuscript (see Yeshurun, vol. 24, p. 925, by Rabbi Dovid Kamenetsky zt”l). The Chumash carries approbations from the leading rabbanim of Lithuania, headed by the Vilna Gaon’s primary disciple, Rabbi Chaim of Volozhin, who writes of his revered teacher: “The father and Rabban shel Yisrael, the Rav who was like an angel of Hashem, whose renown reached every corner of the Jewish world — our great master, the illustrious Gaon, Rabbi Eliyahu the Chassid of Vilna. How great is this day, that we have merited the publication of such a magnificent Mikraos Gedolos.” The leaf following the title page in the first volume contains a lengthy introduction written by the Vilna Gaon’s sons, Rabbi Yehudah Leib and Rabbi Avraham, including biographical details about their father’s life from his childhood. The work was printed at the instruction of Rabbi Ohr Shraga Feivush, Av Beis Din of Dubrovna, who, according to tradition, was the Vilna Gaon’s son-in-law in his youth (see Yeshurun, vol. 24, p. 923, note 12). At the end of Sefer Vayikrah, Rabbi Ohr Shraga describes the Vilna Gaon’s unique method of Torah study and recalls that he studied Torah from him in his youth: “When I was still a youth, I was privileged to savor a small measure of the Gaon’s sweet teachings......” The following works appear here for the first time in print: *Aderes Eliyahu by the Vilna Gaon — First Edition * Aderes Eliyahu al Derech HaSod by the Vilna Gaon — First Edition * Menoras Shlomo, on the Mesorah Gedolah and Mesorah Ketanah, by Rabbi Ohr Shraga — First Edition * Minchas Kalil, on the laws of spellings, vowels and cantillation, by Rabbi Ohr Shraga — First Edition In addition, the Chumash includes the classic commentaries of Rashi, Rabbi Ovadiah Sforno, Baal HaTurim, and Minchas Shai. Owing to its extraordinary size, the work was issued in two volumes, each with its own title page. The Hebrew printing press in Dubrovna, Belarus, operated for only a few years during the first decade of the nineteenth century. According to what is known, only five or six Hebrew titles were printed there. Dubrovna, 1804. First edition of Aderes Eliyahu by the Vilna Gaon and of the commentaries of Rabbi Ohr Shraga. Two volumes. Page Count: Volume I (Bereishis–Vayikrah): [2], 68; 54; 46 leaves. Volume II (Bamidbar–Devarim, with the haftaros): [1], 51; 54; 16 leaves. Height: 43.5 cm. Condition: Holes on many leaves, a few with loss to the text. Stains. First title page has been restored. Repair to the second title page. Antique leather bindings with adhesive paper reinforcements. Bibliography: Otzar Sifrei HaGra, no. 1. Please note: the condition of these volumes is not great. Please review the photographs before bidding. Additional photographs are available upon request. - - - - - - - - - - - - Provenance A copy of the tzaddik Rabbi Akiva Yosef Schlesinger, author of Lev HaIvri, son-in-law of Rabbi Hillel Lichtenstein of Kolomyia, and one of the foremost rabbanim of Hungary and later Jerusalem. Rabbi Akiva Yosef’s handwritten signatures appear on the title page of the first volume and on the front flyleaf. His blue ownership stamps appear on both title pages. Both title pages bear the signatures of Rabbi Michael Steinschneider of Prossnitz, possibly a member of the family of Rabbi Daniel Prossnitz-Steinschneider, Av Beis Din of Pressburg (see Alei Zikaron, no. 63, p. 7). - - - - - - - - - - The Minchas Kalil, first printed in this edition, was subsequently reprinted in numerous later editions due to its great importance. Among them is the first edition of the famous Chassidic commentary Be’erer Mayim Chaim (Mohilov, 1818; Sedlikov, 1820), as well as several editions of Chumashim printed in Zhitomir. The accompanying work Menoras Shlomo likewise appeared in several subsequent editions.