The prefatory rectangular panel is decorated with two narrative scenes from the Book of Esther and two figures of men flanking the inscription in Hebrew. The episode in the upper part of the panel shows the king seated on the throne who is extending the scepter to Esther attended by two maidservants. The scene is witnessed by guardians and possibly courtiers. Most likely it alludes to Es. 5:2. Below, the Hebrew inscription: מגלת אסתר עם זכרון תודה - is placed that is flanked by a dragon (on the right) and an angel (on the left). On either side of the Hebrew text, a man standing on a decorative pedestal ending with leaves and tendrils is represented. On the right, there is a man with a scroll in his hands (Mordecai), and on the left, a man with his head down is depicted (Haman). At the bottom of the panel, the triumph of Mordecai (Es. 6:11) is shown. Mordecai on horseback is a central figure and the scene is crowded with several other figures.
The first two columns of the text of the Book of Esther printed within the frames formed of dense foliate and floral ornaments with an interlaced pattern in their upper parts and masks in their lower parts.
Length of the sheets in the scroll: 1) 425 mm, 2) 430 mm.
Dimensions of the selected details in the scroll:
- text panel: 94x46 mm;
- decoration surrounding text panel: 130x63 mm.
E | Esther, Book of (following the order of the story) | Mordecai's triumph (Es. 6:11)
O | Ornamentation: | Foliate and floral ornaments
M | Mask
A | Angel
D | Dragon
E | Esther, Book of (following the order of the story) | Esther story protagonists
E | Esther, Book of (following the order of the story) | *Esther's Story Characters (depicted not in narrative scenes): | Mordecai, the Jew
E | Esther, Book of (following the order of the story) | *Esther's Story Characters (depicted not in narrative scenes): | Haman, the vizier
O | Ornamentation: | Main text framed
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The scroll is preserved in very good condition.
It lacks only a small part of the decoration in the prefatory panel - the lower part of the figure on the right is missing, therefore, it was supplemented and the design was hand-drawn.
The Book of Esther in Hebrew preceded by a Hebrew inscription.
The scroll is formed of 2 sheets containing 11 text columns with 42 lines of printed text.
The first sheet contains a prefatory panel and 5 columns of the text and the second sheet contains 6 columns.
Haman's sons section is incorporated in col. 9; its text is placed in the last 11 lines (divided into two parts) of the column.
The original text was written in the Hebrew Ashkenazi stam script with tagin.
The letters ח (Es. 1:6) and ת (Es. 9:29) are highlighted by their size. Other enlarged and diminished letters are included in Haman's sons section (col. 9).
The parchment is bright and rather stiff, both sides are almost identical, the blank side is very smooth.
The membranes in the scroll are stitched together.
In the prefatory panel of the scroll, some details regarding its production are included; the column is entitled in Hebrew: מגלת אסתר עם זכרון תודה - "Megilath Esther im Zichron Todah."
Another copy of this megillah is housed in The Library of the Jewish Theological Seminary (the scroll has been cut into 11 leaves and pasted into a book) and yet another copy was auctioned by Kestenbaum in 2015 (https://www.kestenbaum.net/auction/lot/auction-66/066-102/).
The name of the scribe is unknown; in the inscription incorporated in the prefatory panel, he introduced himself as Thüringer Ha-Sofer (טהירינגער הסופר).
Another copy of the scroll featuring the same border is shortly described on https://www.kestenbaum.net/auction/lot/auction-66/066-102/ (accessed on 16.09.2020).
For other works of David Levy Elkan see https://www.bildindex.de/ete?action=displayResult/1 (accessed on 18.09.2020).
David Levy Elkan is listed among engravers in the Jewish Encyclopedia: http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/5768-engraving-and-engravers (accessed on 16.09.2020).
More literature is listed: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Levy_Elkan (accessed on 16.09.2020).