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HEBREW BIBLES

First Separate Printing of the Hebrew Bible in England
TORAH, NEVIIM, U'KETUVIM. BIBLIA HEBRAICA. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1750. Edited by Nathaniel Forster. Original full calf binding, expertly rehinged. Raised spine bands, title "Biblia Hebraica Forsteri" on red morocco label. Custom leather case. Fine copy.
$ 8500
This is the earliest edition of the Hebrew Bible (apart from the London Polyglot) to be printed in England, and represents the great cornerstone of the re-emergence of the Jewish presence in London after more than 300 years of exile.

First Hebrew Bible Printed in America
TORAH, NEVIIM, U'KETUVIM. BIBLIA HEBRAICA. Secundum ultimam editionem Jos. Athiae...Philadelphia: Cura et Impensis Thomae Dobson, MDCCCXIV (1814). Two volumes, 8vo. Original full tree calf, expertly rehinged. Custom leather case. [Together with] BIBLIA HEBRAICA. Secundum ultimam Editionem Jos. Athiae...Amsterdam, 1705. A beautiful set in Very Good condition.
This is the Dutch edition, from which the Hebrew type, provided by the Jewish/Dutch printer, Jonathan Horwitz, was used for the 1814 American printing. This is the First Hebrew Bible printed in America, and as such, became the cornerstone publication for both the study of the Bible and its Hebrew origin in America.

First Translation of the Five Books of Moses into English by a Jew
(PENTATEUCH) TORAT HA'ELOHIM. THE LAW OF GOD. Edited by Isaac Leeser. Five volumes. Philadelphia: Printed by C. Sherman, 5605 (1845). Hebrew and English text of The Five Books of Moses on facing pages. Original binding.
This is the first American translation of the Torah into English by a Jew, Isaac Leeser, who was one of the most prominent and influential Jewish figures in 19th century America. As testimony to this being a thoroughly American translation, Leeser writes in the introduction: "I have to state that I have not looked at a single work issued by English Jews, and that hence I have not borrowed a single idea or suggestion from any one of them, living or dead..."

TORAH SCROLLS

An Unusually Light Weight Antique Sefer Torah
SEFER TORAH. Probably Lithuania. Beit Yosef Ashkenazi script. Late 19th century. Height of scroll, 14" plus rollers.
$ 13,500
Unusually light weight (9 pounds) for easy handling by young and old. Certified for private and public reading. A lovely antique European Torah scroll, with a touch of history, at half the price of a new scroll.

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