[Maḥazor minhag Roma le-khol ha-shanah]. [מחזור מנהג רומה לכל השנה]. [Liturgy for the whole year according to the Italian rite, with appendix of hymns].
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Type of record: Archive
Title: [Maḥazor minhag Roma le-khol ha-shanah]. [מחזור מנהג רומה לכל השנה]. [Liturgy for the whole year according to the Italian rite, with appendix of hymns].
Classmark: MS ROTH/2
Creator(s): Ibn Ezra, Abraham ben Meïr (1092-1167)(poet)
Date(s): [14th-15th century]
Language: Hebrew
Size and medium: 239 leaves : vellum
Persistent link: https://explore.library.leeds.ac.uk/special-collections-explore/115426
Description
Hebrew title supplied from cataloguer. English title derived from Roth, “Catalogue,” in Alexander Marx: Jubilee Volume, vol. 1 (New York, 1950), no. 2.
Variant titles:
Maḥzor ke-minhag bene Roma. מחזור כמנהג בני רומא.
Maḥazor minhag Iṭalyani. מחזור מנהג איטליאני.
Seder tefilot le-khol ha-shanah ke-minhag Romah. סדר תפילות לכל השנה כמנהג רומה.
Written in a beautiful Italian bookhand on very fine parchment with hair and flesh sides distinguishable; interesting binding (see below).
Contents:
1. folios 2r–4r: מוסף ליום הכפורים (added by secondary hand).
2. folio 4v: blank.
3. folios 5r–16v: [ברכות השחר] (does not contain מגביה שפלים).
4. folios 16v–56v : [תפילת שחרית לחול].
5. folios 57r–61r: [תפלת ערבית לחול].
7. folios 60r–61r: סדר הטבת חלום.
8. folios 61r–62r: סדר קריאת המטה.
9. folios 62r–67v: סדר תפלת שבת.
10. folios 68r–104v: סדר תפלת שחרית.
11. folios 104v–113v: ענין ראש חדש.
12. folios 113v–113v: ענין חנוכה.
13. folios 114v–122v: ענין פורים.
14. folios 123r–156v[=157v]: ענין פסח.
15. folios 157r[=158r]–161v[=162v]: ענין שבועות.
16. folio 162r[=163r]: ענין תענית .
17. folios 162v[=163v]–163r[=163r]: ענין תשעה באב.
18. folios 163r[=164r]–213v[=206v]: ענין ראש השנה.
19. folios 213v[=206v]–232r[=225r]: הושענא.
20. folios 232r[=225r]–241r[=238v]: ענין שמיני עצרת.
21. folios 238v[=231v]–239v[=232v]: רשות לקדיש לר' יהודה הלוי.
22. folios 239v[=232v]–240v[=233v]: רשות לקדיש לכמה׳׳ר יואב בכ׳׳ר בנימין.
23. folios 241v[=234v]–242v[=235v]: גאולה לר' אברהם אבן עזרא.
24. folios 242v[=235v]– 243r[=236r]: [גאולה] אחרת להר׳ מימון זל.
25. folios 243v[=236v]–244r[=237r]: [ קדיש דרבנן].
26. folios 243v[=236v]–246r[=239r]: Psalms and Psalm verses which are recited before the evening service for the conclusion of Shabat (ערבית של מוצאי שבת) according to Italian tradition beginning with יי׳ מלך גאות לבש (Psalms 93). The last two Psalms (144 and 67) on folios 245v–246r are not vocalised (likely added by secondary hand).
Appended hymns:
1. folios 238v[=231v]–239v[=232v]: רשות לקדיש (reshut le-Ḳadish): יה שמך ארוממך וצדקתך לא אכסה, by Yehudah ha-Leṿi (Davidson, Otsar ha-Shirah, vol. 2, 309, no. 1143).
2. folios 239v[=232v]–240v[=233v]: Reshut le-Ḳadish: יה מלכי מנעה מבכי, by Yoʾav ben Benyamin (יואב בן בנימין) (Davidson, Otsar ha-Shirah, vol. 2, 302, no. 980).
3. folios 241v[=234v]–242v[=235v]: גאולה (geʾulah): אל ישראל נקראת לפנים by Avraham ibn ʿEzra (1089-1164) (Davidson, Otsar ha-Shirah, vol. 1, 173, no. 3735).
4. folios 242v[=235v]– 243r[=236r]: Geʾulah:
מלכי עד מתי תראה צרותי by R. Maimon (Davidson, Otsar ha-Shirah, vol. 3, 149, no. 1739).
Censorship:
שלא עשאני גוי (folio 6r).
עלינו used to be complete; attempt to erase passage (55v).
Ornamental line in pale ink filling in a spatium in ברכת המינים (Birkat ha-Minim) (folio 44).
State of text:
Heavy staining indicates severe water damage in the past; spotting and discolouration of the inner part of the leaves due to now inactive mould; some pest damage mostly without loss of text.
Heavy ink corrosion in some places but text is mostly still readable; ink on 243v[=236v] appears to be bright green due to the oxidation of its possibly rather high copper content.
Bibliographical note:
Roth, “Catalogue ,” in Alexander Marx: Jubilee Volume, vol. 1 (New York, 1950), no. 2.
National Library of Israel (NLI), Online Catalogue, system-no. 990001855810205171. The NLI’s description is based on the microfilm of MS Roth 2 made on behalf of the Institute of Microfilmed Hebrew Manuscripts of the NLI during the 1960s. The microfilm can now be downloaded in a digitised form from the NLI-webpage.
Davis, Handlist 164 (Leeds, 2005), no. 2.
Decoration
Traditional Maḥzor layout with basic decorative elements.
1: Main headings and initial words in bigger and bolder square script letters.
2: Ornamental elements added to heading of Shemini ʿAtseret (folio 232r).
3: Uniform layout; the usual prayers are copied with poetic spacing.
4: Size and type of the Italian Hebrew script is changing according to the content, e.g., the passages containing directions for cantor (ḥazan) and community are in smaller script and indented.
5: Substitution for Tetragrammaton.
6: Overall strict maintenance of left margins by employment of graphic fillers.
7: Ornamental line in pale ink filling the spatium in censored line of ברכת המינים (folio 44).
Physical characteristics
Dimensions of written space: 86mm x 60mm.
Dimensions of binding: 131mm x 96mm.
Foliation: ii (handmade paper; i is pastedown) + i (parchment; binder’s waste) + 239 (parchment; foliated as 1–135, 135A[=136], 136[=137]–180[=181], 189[=182]–246[=239]) + ii (handmade paper; ii is pastedown); modern pencil foliation, upper left recto; folio 4v is blank.
Collation: 1⁴ 2–23¹⁰ 24⁶(wants 6, after folio 239, probably blank).
Ruling: likely frame-ruled in hard point (horizontal rulings) and pale ink (vertical bounding lines); 16 ruled lines; possible use of ruling instrument.
Number of lines: 14–16.
Script: Italian Hebrew script.
Ms. codex: width 96mm height 129mm
Binding
19th–20th half vellum bound with German(?) shell marbled paper over pulp-boards (the paper is pasted over the vellum corners); hollow spine is 5 cm wide.
The vellum used for the binding is binder’s waste, that is, part of a Hebrew vellum manuscript leaf (most of its writing is not discernible anymore).
On cover of upper board, label embossed with “M. Scharf[?] Meyer/ Fire, Life & Accident Insurance Agent”.
Spine and Boards are partly damaged and rather worn at the edges.
Some remnants of the original medieval or early modern binding of the item are still extant:
1. Original front paste-down (which is now the first fly-leaf) which is a reused part of a medieval Latin manuscript written in Italian rotunda (some rubrication is still visible and the name Cicero stands out) (binder’s waste).
2. A thin remaining strip of the back paste-down (binder’s waste).
3. Likely the sewing over three bands.
The volume is held in a custom-made conservation case covered with brown cloth.
Vocalisation and cantillation
The liturgical parts are vocalised.
Scribal information
The main text and one set of marginal notes are written in one professional Italian hand; texts on folios 2r–4r and possibly 243v–246v (see above Description) are likely added by secondary hand(s).
Former owners and annotations
Some pen-trials on folio 1r.
Annotations:
Likely by at least two different hands.
The first set of marginal annotations are clearly corrections by the scribe of the main text (see, e.g., folio 75v were the same substitution of the Tetragrammaton is used in the marginal not as in the main text). Part of the text of many longer notes written in the outside margins by the first hand is lost due to trimming of the fore edge.
The majority of additional marginal notes written by secondary hand(s) are mostly corrections.
Notable is a correction in scroll script in the margin in folio 10r.
Owner’s marks and labels:
1. Spine: Damaged label with סדור תפי[לה] כ׳׳י על הקלף (in ink).
2. Front paper fly-leaf recto: Bookplate: “From the library of Dr. J[oseph] H[ermann] Hertz, C.H., Chief Rabbi from 1913-1946”.
3. Above Hertz’s plate a small label with a printed red frame with “21 prayer book” in black ink; most likely Roth, added “(Italian) Ms” and cancelled the 1 of 21 in blue ink.
3. Front paper fly-leaf verso: “Siddur-Italian Rite. Book of Daily Prayers. MS. 159 le. N 7[?]0” in regular and blue pencil not in Roth’s hand.
4. Front paste-down: Bookplate of The Cecil Roth Collection (pasted over Roth’s private ex-libris), and Roth’s description of MS Roth 2, cut out from a copy of his printed catalogue.
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