Babylonian Talmud, Tractate Eruvin, with the commentary of the Rosh, the Rambam's commentary on Mishnayot and the Maharsha. Slavita, [R. Moshe Shapira Rabbi of Slavita, and son] R. Shmuel Avraham Shapira, 1836.
This Talmud volume was printed in autumn 1836, at the height of the famous polemic between the printers of Slavita and those of Vilna, and it is the last volume of this edition to be printed. It is also one of the last volumes printed in the Slavita printing press before its tragic closure. This volume is part of the fourth edition of the Slavita Talmud, of which only the printing of Tractates Berachot, Shabbat and Eruvin were completed (in the middle of the printing of Tractate Pesachim, the press was shut down by the Russian authorities, following the infamous libel).
23 letters and approbations are featured at the beginning of the volume, from leading rabbis of the generation who supported the Slavita printers, including: R. Elazar Löw – author of Shemen Roke'ach, R. Avraham Abele Poswoler Rabbi of Vilna, R. Yaakov Orenstein Rabbi of Lviv – author of Yeshuot Yaakov, R. Shlomo Kluger Rabbi of Brody; as well as Polish Chassidic leaders – Rebbe Yitzchak of Warka, R. Shraga Feivel of Gritza, R. Chaim Meir Yechiel of Mogelnitza (the Saraf of Mogelnitza); R. Aryeh Leibush Lifshitz of Vishnitza – author of Aryeh Debei Ila'i (son-in-law of the Yismach Moshe and father-in-law of the Rebbe of Shinova), R. Eizik of Homel – leading disciple of the Baal HaTanya.
These letters and approbations contain much exclusive and valuable information on the development of the famous polemic, in which some two hundred rabbis of that generation were involved.
During the course of the polemic, the Vilna printers propagated a rumor which alleged that the rabbis backing them had issued a prohibition and excommunication on whoever would buy the Slavita Talmud. In light of this, the Slavita printers asked the rabbis supporting them to cancel this prohibition (if it was ever enacted). The rabbis and rebbes responded with the letters printed at the beginning of this volume, in which they contend that not only was there no prohibition, on the contrary, they extend an abundance of blessing, in material and spiritual matters, to whomever would buy volumes of Slavita Talmud: "The buyers… will be blessed with all good, and will merit to see sons and grandsons alive and well, engaged in our holy Torah… life, peace and all good in comfort for the worship of G-d" (the Saraf of Mogelnitza); "Whoever steps forward to purchase this Talmud from the Slavita printers will be blessed with an abundance of blessing… sons, life, sustenance and all good" (author of Aryeh Debei Ila'i); "Those who fill their hand for G-d to acquire the Slavita Talmud… will be blessed with the blessing of good, will receive blessing from G-d from Heaven… and will become wealthy through the blessing of G-d, and they will merit to study, and to see their sons and grandsons studying G-d's Torah in comfort" (Rebbe Shraga Feivel of Gritza); "Whoever is wise-hearted will grab a good deed to awaken his ear in study, to purchase the Slavita Talmud… those who study in this Talmud edition… and those who buy it, will merit to have the light of Torah illuminating their eyes" (R. Aryeh Leib Horowitz Rabbi of Stanislav).
On the front endpapers: "This Gemara belongs to the glorious wealthy man, R. Nechemia son of R. Moshe Krasotski of Lublin". Other stamps and ownership inscriptions on the title pages and other leaves.
[4], 2-132; 17, [1] leaves. Two title pages. Title page printed in red and black. 38 cm. Good condition. Stains, dampstains. Original leather binding, partially covered with fabric, torn and detached.

Tehillim, with the Metzudat David and Metzudat Tzion commentaries, and Maamadot. Zhitomir: R. Chanina Lipa and R. Yehoshua Heshel Shapira, grandsons of the rabbi of Slavita, 1855.
Title page printed in red and black.
[2], 172 leaves. 20 cm. Fair condition. Stains. Dark stains and traces of past dampness to some leaves. Wear and distinct signs of use to most leaves. Light worming to first leaves. Tears and damage to margins of title page and to second leaf, slightly affecting border, repaired with paper. Damage and tears to a few other leaves, slightly affecting text, repaired. Stamps. New leather binding.
This edition is bibliographically unknown.

"Proclamation of Marital Law in Jerusalem", a trilingual proclamation which was printed a short time after the conquest of Jerusalem by the British on December 9, 1917, containing the text of the Jerusalem Declaration – the official declaration of Martial Law in Jerusalem by Sir Edmund Allenby. [Jerusalem?]: Govt. Press, December 1917. English, French and Italian. The first proclamation that was printed under the British Mandate for Palestine. 300 copies printed.
The proclamation before us bears a dedication handwritten by Ronald Storrs, the first British governor of Jerusalem: "Ronald Storrs / military governor / to Colonel Isham" [Colonel Ralph Heyward Isham].
The Turkish army retreated from Jerusalem on the eve of December 8, 1917. The next day, the Muslim Mayor of Jerusalem, Hussein el-Husayni, and his entourage gave their written submission and the keys of the city to the British Army. The official surrender took place two days later, on December 11. On the same day, General Allenby entered Jerusalem and announced its conquest during a festive ceremony in the presence of the commanders-in-chief of the Allies of World War I. The great importance Allenby attributed to the event was reflected, among others, in his decision to dismount his horse before entering the Jaffa gate and in this declaration, which was read in several languages and was printed on two different broadsides (the one before us and an additional one, which was printed in Hebrew, Arabic, Russian and Greek).
In his declaration, Allenby chose to emphasize the importance of Jerusalem's uniqueness as a city which is sacred to the three religions: "[…] do I make known to you that every sacred building, monument, holy spot, shrine, traditional site, endowment, pious bequest or customary place of prayer, of whatsoever form of the three religions, will be maintained and protected according to the existing customs and beliefs of those to whose faith they are sacred".
Ronald Henry Amherst Storrs (1881-1955), who signed the proclamation before us, was the first military governor of Jerusalem during the British Mandate. In 1904, he was sent to serve in the Egyptian Civil Administration and within several years, was appointed as the secretary of the High Commissioner in Egypt, Henry McMahon. Storrs was fluent in Arabic and was familiar with the culture of the area. During the years of the war, he was in contact with the leader of the Hashemite dynasty, Hussein ibn Ali al-Hashimi, and he was the person to introduce him to the British army officer Thomas Edward Lawrence ("Lawrence of Arabia").
After the war, Storrs was appointed the military governor of Jerusalem, after the officer who was supposed to receive the appointment, Bill Burton, declined the offer claiming that "the only sufferable places in Jerusalem are the bathtub and the bed".
Although he did much for the city (issued coins, renewed the postal services, enacted a law for cladding the houses of Jerusalem with stone), more than once Storrs was accused of hostile and discriminating attitude towards the Jews and there were people who saw him as responsible for the 1920 and 1921 Riots. In his memoir, Storrs recalled: "I had to endure such a tempest of vituperation in the Palestine and World Hebrew Press that I am still unable to understand how I did not emerge from it an anti-Semite for life". Nonetheless, Storrs felt affection for several key figures of the Jewish Yishuv and was a friend of Chaim Nachman Bialik, Achad HaAm and even Ze'ev Jabotinsky. He died in England in 1955, at the age of 73.
The receiver of the proclamation, Ralph Heyward Isham (1890-1955) was an American collector of books and manuscripts, who was known for purchasing documents and manuscripts of the writer James Boswell. During World War I, he served in the British Army; it was then that he presumably received the proclamation before us from Ronald Storrs.
Although 300 copies of the proclamation were printed, it seems that only a few copies had survived (Isham himself believed that only three copies of the proclamation had survived. See enclosed article of the New York Times).
65.5X50 cm. Good overall condition. Stains. Brittle paper. Tears to the margins, some of them restored.
Enclosed:
A clipping from the New York Times (May 16, 1936) – an article describing the proclamation before us (accompanied by a picture). English.
Provenance:
1. The Collection of Ralph Heyward Isham.
2. Bought at Christie's, New York. Auction no. 6824, May 17, 1989.

Collection of items documenting the philanthropic activity of the couple Yefim and Sarah Kirschner for various Jewish and Zionist organizations, and especially for the Maritime school of Betar in Italy and an aid organization for Jewish refugees in France. The collection contains letters sent to the couple, some thanking them for their activity and others requesting their financial aid, including an interesting letter handwritten by Ze'ev Jabotinsky (sent from the USA, several months prior to his death). Italy, France, USA, Palestine and elsewhere, the 1930s and 1940s (some of them from earlier or later years). Russian and French (several items in other languages).
Yefim (Ephraim) Kirschner, a fur trader, was born in Odessa in 1879. From Odessa he moved to Germany and from there, to Paris. Throughout his life, Kirschner was in contact with various Zionist leaders and Jewish organization, devoting his time and donating a considerable part of his fortune to support their activities. Several fundraisers were held in his house in Paris, organized by his wife Sarah, and many appealed to the couple with requests for donations and assistance.
Today, Kirschner is remembered mainly due to his contribution to the activity of the maritime school of Betar in Civitavecchia, Italy, during the 1930s. His contribution enabled, among others, the purchase of a training ship for the school (the ship was named "Sarah I" after Kirschner's wife). During this period of time, he was introduced to Ze'ev Jabotinsky and the two remained in touch during the following years. Kirschner's activity for the maritime school of Betar and for the Revisionist Movement were documented by Yirmiyahu Halpern in his book "The Revival of Hebrew Seamanship" (Hebrew) (Tel-Aviv, 1961). In the book, Halpern describes Kirschner as "One of the last of the Mohicans of his kind in our generation – a Jewish figure of Morozov [a Russian merchant who financially supported Russian literature and art], one of the characters commemorated by Jabotinsky, using his artistic imagination, in his book 'Piatero'".
The collection before us includes photographs of the school in Civitavecchia as well as letters, certificates and documents shedding light on the diverse philanthropic activity of Yefim and Sarah Kirschner, on their contacts with Jewish leaders around the world and their forgotten contribution to the Zionist enterprise.
The collection can be divided into several sections:
1. Items related to the maritime school of Betar in Civitavecchia
The maritime school for training Hebrew seamen and marine officers in Civitavecchia, Italy, operated during the years 1935-1938 and was the first institution in Modern History to train Hebrew marine officers. Yirmiyahu Halpern, a member of Betar and the Revisionist Movement, was the person to initiate the establishment of the school, which trained three years of students from Europe and Palestine. The school training ship, TS Sarah I, was purchased with Kirschner's money and served the school until its sinking in 1937 (the ship sank near the coast of Corsica after returning from a visit to Palestine).
Among the items:
• Photographs of the students and teachers of the school, including: group photographs taken on deck of the TS Sarah I (one of them depicting Kirschner); a photograph of a formation of the second-year students of the school; photograph taken during a student group visit to Palestine; and more. Some of the photographs are signed in the plate "Foto Fabiani Civitavecchia".
• A handwritten copy of a letter sent by Yirmiyahu Halpern to Ze'ev Jabotinsky, dealing with the TS Sarah I. October 1935. At the end of the letter it is noted that an additional copy was sent to Yefim Kirschner. The letter bears a Tel-Hai Fund stamp depicting the TS Sarah I.
• "Jewish Marine League" – a booklet issued by the Jewish Marine League established in order to support the maritime school in Civitavecchia and operating from New-York. The booklet contains photographs of the school and information about its activity and the league's activity.
2. Letters to Yefim and Sarah Kirschner dealing with their philanthropic activity
• Certificate of appreciation given to the Kirschners subsequent to a fundraiser that they held for an aid organization for Jewish refugees in France - Foyer des Israelites Refugies. The certificate is written on parchment, in neat script (in Russian) and signed by the members of the organization. November 1937.
• Two letters of appreciation to the Kirschners by the Union Pour la Protection des Israelites Emigres et de leurs enfants ("The Union for Protection of Jewish Refugees and Their Children"; presumably, the first name of the Foyer des Israelites Refugies).
• A letter to Yefim Kirschner, handwritten and signed by Ze'ev Jabotinsky (three and a half pages. Russian). In the letter, sent from New-York in May 1940, Jabotinsky asks Kirschner for a donation of $15,000 for funding his activity in the USA and achieving the goal of establishing a united Zionist front that will demand Jewish settlement in Palestine.
At the beginning of the letter, Jabotinsky writes about the situation in Europe and the apparent need for a new haven for Jewish refugees of war – Palestine: "I think that towards the end of the war there will be millions of homeless Jews, so homeless that we could only bring them back to a 'Jewish State'. The Great Powers will not find any other country for this purpose but Palestine (although it now seems that very soon they will be able to find)… England will not object, and no one will take the Arabs into consideration".
Later in the letter, Jabotinsky addresses the difficulties in recruiting the support of American Jews and establishing a united Zionist front, and the great importance of his mission: "This of course is the final great mission of my life. It is especially difficult since everyone here is in deep sleep, Zionist and those who have assimilated alike, and I am treated as people always and everywhere treat a person who is trying to awaken others… our people are dying in Eastern Europe, and now the last hour has come in which our generation will be able to fulfill its historical mission…".
At the end of the letter, Jabotinsky tells Kirschner about his son who is imprisoned in Palestine [in 1937, Eri Jabotinsky was imprisoned by the police of the British Mandate after being involved in a retaliation act against Arabs].
Jabotinsky came to the USA in 1940, as part of a delegation of the New Zionist Federation for establishing a Hebrew army. During his visit, he suffered a massive heart attack and passed away. In his final years, only he knew about his illness and he saw his mission in the USA as his final great enterprise, as is reflected in the letter before us.
• Additional letters sent to the Kirschners: requests for aid, invitations, letters of appreciation, and more. Among them, a French letter by the Tel Hai Fund, hand-signed by Johanna Jabotinsky; a letter hand-signed by Ezra Taubal, one of the leaders of the Jewish community of Argentine; baron Robert de-Rothschild's calling card, with several handwritten lines; and more.
3. Additional items from the estate of Yefim Kirschner
• Official documents of the Mandate Government – extract from the register of land indicating that land was purchased by Kirschner in the area of Tulkarm.
• Personal photographs; presumably from his wedding day.
• An identifying document, issued to Kirschner in France in 1939.
• And more.
A total of 55 items (35 letters and paper items and 20 photographs). Size and condition vary.