Auction 62 - Judaica - Books, Manuscripts, Rabbinical Letters, Ceremonial Art

Toldot Adam – Venice, 1605 – Rare Book

Opening: $500
Sold for: $2,375
Including buyer's premium
Toldot Adam, "Brief history… from Adam until the year of the burning of the books in Italy", by R. Shmuel Algazi. Venice: Zuan (Giovanni) di Gara, [1605].
Two halachic rulings by the author, R. Shmuel Algazi, appear at the end of the book, one "concerning shaking the lulav" (with an approbation on the ruling by the Rama of Fano, R. Ovadia Sforno and R. Tzion Francis), and the second on the topic of "using a pawn".
The Chida writes of the rarity of this book (Shem HaGedolim, under R. Shmuel Algazi): "A small booklet was printed in Venice entitled Toldot Adam in 1605… each generation and its scholars from 1583 upwards, and this booklet is rare…".
The title page bears the signatures: "Avraham ibn Danan", "Avraham ibn" (the second signature was interrupted). The ibn Danan family was a prominent Moroccan family. Several great Torah scholars bore this name, including R. Avraham ibn Danan who served as dayan together with the Yaavetz, R. Yehuda ben Attar and their colleagues.
14 [i.e. 16] leaves. 13 cm. Good-fair condition. Stains and wear. Several places reinforced with paper. Early parchment binding.
Regarding the year of printing, see: Y. Yudlov, Sinai, 84, 1979, pp. 167-168.
Early Printed books
Early Printed books