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Object Alone

Obj. ID: 1231
Hebrew Illuminated Manuscripts
  Vienna Seder Tikkunei Shabbat, Pressburg, 1726/7

© Center for Jewish Art, Photographer: Unknown,
Summary and Remarks

As indicated in the colophon, Seder Tikkunei Shabbat was written in (5)487 (=1726/7) in Pressburg, a place near Vienna, by an unknown scribe.

Seder Tikkunei Shabbat is a kabalistic treatise, consisting of mystic poems for the Sabbath and explanations of the Sabbath ceremonies. It has been attributed to Isaac ben Solomon Ashkenazi Luria (Ha-Ari, born Jerusalem 1534, died Safed 1572). This book was popular among Ashkenazi and Sephardi Jews. It was printed in many editions, with the first printed edition in 1651 in Prague. The printed and handwritten compilations vary from one copy to the other (see Lieberman, Sefer Tikkunei Shabbat, p. 402). As Fishof (Yakob Sofer mi-Berlin, p. 85) pointed out, the earlier printed editions of Tikkunei Shabbat were not illustrated while the handwritten books, which are modeled after the printed editions, have illuminated title-page and text illustrations.

The decoration program of our manuscript and the style of the illustrations are pointing to the Jewish Bohemian-Moravian School of book illuminations in the eighteen century that formed a center inVienna.

Two of the prominent scribe-artists who were active in Viennafor more than half of the 18th century are Meshulam Simmel from Polna (Bohemia), and Aaron Wolf Herlingen from Gewitsch (Moravia). It seems that some of their patrons were wealthy Jews of high position in the Habsburg court of Vienna. See for example, Simmel's Haggadah of 1719 which was commissioned by Isaac Oppenheim, a Court-Jew in Vienna (Jerusalem, Jewish National and University Library, Ms. Heb. 8o 5573; Schubert, Jüdische Buchkunst, p. 87 and fig. 48), and his two dedicatory pages for Charles the VI in 1732 and 1733 (Vienna, Austrian National Library, Cod. Hebr. 223 and 224; see: Cats.-Nr. ##),

Herlingen was even closer to the royal court. In several manuscripts (See for example,Vienna, Austrian National Library, S.n. 1594) he signed his colophons with the words "Scribe of the Royal Library of Vienna".

Striking is the relatively surviving of Seder Tikkunei Shabbat from Vienna and the surrounding cities, like Pressburg and Kitssee, one of the earliest of which was written by Simmel (Vienna 1714; London, BL, Add. 11433). The prayers in the various books of Seder Tikkunei Shabbat and the decoration program are sometimes differ from one copy to the other. However, some sections of prayers and illustrations are traditional. As in our manuscript the decoration program consists mainly of title-page, text illustrations and initial word panels. Direct comparable of these decorations is in two Herlingen's dated and signed Seder Tikkunei Shabbat both done in Pressburg. One in 1731, now in Paris (Dr. Berenheim, no. 4), and the other one in 1738 now in Jerusalem (a miniature book, sold by Sotheby’s Tel Aviv, 9.12.1999, lot. 67, now in the Israel Museum in Jerusalem). Both contain: A. An architectural title page with Aaron and Moses at the entrance (Our manuscript, fol. 1; Paris, fol. 1; Jerusalem, fol. 1); B. Ritual and biblical scenes within panels illustrating the same sections of text: A family around the Kiddush table (Our manuscript, fol. 17v; Paris, fol. 19; Jerusalem, fol. 17v), Elijah ascending to heaven (Our manuscript, fol. 44v; Paris, fol. 54v) and Jacob wrestling with the angel (Our manuscript, fol. 46; Paris, fol. 56; Jerusalem, fol. 41v); C. Initial word panels at the opening of the same sections, such as "O come" (לכו) (Our manuscript, fol. 4; Paris, fol. 4v; Jerusalem, fol. 3v), "Song" ((שיר (Our manuscript, fol. 11; Paris, fol. 11), "Whoever" (כל) (Our manuscript, fol. 19; Paris, fol. 20; Jerusalem, fol. 18v) and "Blessed" (ברוך) (Our manuscript, fol. 28v; Paris, fol. 33v).

However, Parisand Jerusalemmanuscripts have other illustrations that are not included in our Tikkunei Shabbat, e.g. an illustrative panel of Havdalah. The Jerusalem book has the richest decoration program by Herlingen, and includes other illustrative panels which are not presented in Vienna and Paris: a standing man reciting Shalom Alechem ("Peace be with you"), Solomon’s Judgment, Solomon’s bed guarded by soldiers, and the Temptation.

Like all eighteen century scribes, the models of the title-pages are pointing to various printed books, like the Venetian Haggadah from 1609 (Schubert, Jüdische Buchkunst, fig. 35) and the Amsterdam Haggadah from 1695/1712, although some motifs, as for example, the two putti on garlands in our medallion, originated from the Mantua Haggadah (1560) or a similar source with the strong influence of the Italian Renaissance.

The ritual illustration next to the text of Sabbath Eve Kiddush appears in Simmel's Viennese Tikkunei Shabbat of 1715 (London - British Library, Add. 11433, fol. 22); 1724 (fol. 15v) and 1725 (fol. 21) (both in NY, JTS, Ms. 8269 and Ms. 8093). The other illustrations can be found in the rich Tikkunei Shabbat manuscript, attribute to Simmel, now in BL, Add. 8881, with the Ascension of Elijah (fol. 74) and Jacob wrestling with the angel (fol. 101v), but each in a different iconography.

 

The style of decoration in our manuscript, with the richly water coloured pen-drawings, the strongly stylized background architectures, the soft landscapes, mostly ending in flat mountains, the clouds formations mostly in white and the partly very schematic faces of the acting figures remind strongly of the oeuvre of Aaron Wolf Herlingen. Such as that in the Sefer Brit Milah by Herlingen of 1728 (Prague, The Jewish Museum (Zidovkse Muzeum), Ms 243), especially in the upper left medallion of the title page where the landscape in the scene of the ascension of Elijah is very similar (See: Schubert, Jüdische Buchkunst, fig. 93).

However, stylistic comparison with Herilngen's signed manuscripts from around the date of our manuscript (such as Seder Tikkunei Shabbat, Vienna, 1724 (NY, JTS, ms. 8232), shows that in his illustrations the faces features of the figures are more expressive than in our illustrations, where the faces and drapery of the figures are all flat and so is the entire meager compositions (compare for instance the figures of Aaron and Moses in the title pages of our manuscript, fol. 1, and Herlingen's JTS, fol. 1).

We assume that these differences of style indicating that the illustrations of our manuscript were produced by one of the followers or assistant of Herlingen in Pressburg.

As we already know Herlingen was active in Pressburg (Schubert, Jüdische Buchkunst, p. 87). His name is found in the census of the Jews of Pressburg from 1736, which mentions also that Aaron from Gewitsch, a clerk in the Royal Library in Vienna, has one woman; one assistant and one maid (see Schrijver, Perek Shirah, pp. 23-24). The reference to the assistant lead some scholars (see Naményi, La Miniature juive, p. 62) to the conclusion that the differences in style in his works during his 28 years of production (1724-1752) is a result of the other hand of the assistant who helped him in his work.

Also the style of the script is close to the oeuvre of Herlingen (Such as in his Seder Tikkunei Shabbat, Vienna, 1724, mentioned above). Schrijver (ibid, pp. 23-24) pointed out the typical line-filler signs used by Herlingen, e.g. a small Yud or the S-form, and the different ways of writing the name of God, mostly as a capital "L" with two letters of yod (a sort of ligature). These peculiarities are found also in our manuscript (see fols. 4, 11). But some of the letters of our scribe (e.g. ayin, pei and alef) which are different in form from that of Herlingen, may suggest that Herlingen's follower also copied the text in our manuscript.

 

In August 18th 1855, the manuscript was presented to Franz Joseph I of Austria (18 August 1830 – 21 November 1916) in honor of his birthday, by Moses Müller, a scribe who signed his name on the leather box of the book in gold tooling. This scribe had in his possession also two ketubbot (Cod. Hebr. 135 and 136) and a SeMaG (Cod. Hebr. 34/I,II, known as the Vienna Semag, see (Cat.-Nr. ##)), all now in the Austrian National Library. In this library there are also two manuscripts with praises to this Emperor Franz Joseph I – Cod. Hebr. 216 and 217

 

Remarks

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Name/Title
Vienna Seder Tikkunei Shabbat | Unknown
Object Detail
Monument Setting
Unknown
Date
1726/7
Active dates
Reconstruction dates
Artist/ Maker
Unknown
Historical Origin
Unknown
Community type
Congregation
Unknown
Site
Unknown
Period
Unknown
Period Detail
Collection
Austria | Vienna | Österreichische Nationalbibliothek (ÖNB)
| Cod. Hebr. 130 (Schwartz, No. 94)
Documentation / Research project
Unknown
Iconographical Subject
Unknown |
Textual Content
Unknown |
Languages of inscription
Unknown
Shape / Form
Unknown
Material / Technique
Black ink, gray wash and gold color
Material Stucture
Material Decoration
Material Bonding
Material Inscription
Material Additions
Material Cloth
Material Lining
Tesserae Arrangement
Density
Colors
Construction material
Measurements
Height
Length
Width
Depth
Circumference
Thickness
Diameter
Weight
Axis
Panel Measurements
Condition
Good
Extant
Documented by CJA
Surveyed by CJA
Present Usage
Present Usage Details
Condition of Building Fabric
Architectural Significance type
Historical significance: Event/Period
Historical significance: Collective Memory/Folklore
Historical significance: Person
Architectural Significance: Style
Architectural Significance: Artistic Decoration
Urban significance
Significance Rating
0
Ornamentation
Decorated title page
Custom
Contents
Seder Tikkunei Shabbat (,סדר תיקוני שבת Sabbath Prayers with kabbalistic ritual rules and zemirot (poems, hymns) according to Isaac Luria (Ha-Ari). Title page (fol. 1), Sabbath Eve Prayers (fols. 1v-23), main sections: Kabalat Shabbat (Welcoming the Sabbath; fols. 4-7v), Song of Songs 1:1-4:4 alternated with Mishnah tractate Sabbath ch. 1-8 (fols. 11-15), Sabbath eve kiddush and prayer before meal (fols. 17v-18v) and zemirot (fols. 19-22v), Sabbath Day Prayers (fols. 23-36v), main sections: Song of Songs 4:5-6:4 alternated with Mishnah tractate Sabbath, ch. 9-16 (fols. 23-26), kiddush (fols. 27v-28), zemirot (fols. 28v-32), Song of Songs 6:5-end (8:14) alternated with Mishnah tractate Sabbath ch. 17-end (ch. 24) (fols. 32v-35v), Third Meal Laws (fols. 35v-36v), Termination of the Sabbath (fols. 36v-57v), main sections: zemirot (fols. 36v-41v), biblical readings on Elijah (fols. 42-45; I Kings 17:1, 13, 15, 16, 18, 22, 23, 24; 18:1, 2, 7, 8, 14-17, 21, 22, 25-27, 30, 31, 36, 40-42, 46; 19:1, 2, 9, 13, 19, 20, 21; 21:20, 28; II Kings 1:3, 4, 8, 10, 12, 13, 15, 17; 2:1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 9, 11, 13-15; 3:11; 9:36; 10:10, 17; Chronicles II, 21:12; Malachi 3:23), and Parashat Vayishlah (Gen. 32:4- 33: 20; fols. 45-47v), Havadalah (fol. 47v-48).
Codicology

Material: Parchment; II + 58 + II leaves.

 

Measurements

Full page: ca. 97 x61.5 mm

Main text in frames: ca. 74 X47 mm. (fols. 1-50r)

Main text: 71 X45 mm. (fols. 50v-57v)

 

Scribes

Single

 

Script

Main text written in small square Ashkenazi script, in dark brown ink.

Commentary and some other text (e.g. tractate Sabbath) are written in a very small semi cursive Ashkenazi script in dark and light brown ink

 

Number of lines

Main text in square script:

21 lines per page. (e.g. fols. 4v, 5, 8v, 9, 29-31, 51-52v, 54-57v)

Pages with main and commentary texts :

Various number of lines (e.g. fols. 3v-22 lines, 9v-25 lines, 13-30 lines)

 

Ruling

Ruling by stylus, 21 double (42 lines) horizontal lines and 1 + 1 vertical lines (e.g. fols. 5, 8v, 56).

 

Pricking

Pricking is discernible in the outer and inner margins within the frame (e.g. fols. 15, 18v). Double pricking is noticeable in some pages (e.g. fol. 2v) probably for the written commentary, although no additional ruling is found.

 

Quires

15 quires of 4 leaves each except for XIII2 (no text is missing).

 

Catchwords

One catchword for quire VI (fol. 24v) appears within the text panel in the lower left-hand corner.

 

Hebrew numeration

None.

 

Blank leaves

Fol. 58. 

Scribes
Script
Number of Lines
Ruling
Pricking
Quires
Catchwords
Hebrew Numeration
Blank Leaves
Direction/Location
Façade (main)
Endivances
Location of Torah Ark
Location of Apse
Location of Niche
Location of Reader's Desk
Location of Platform
Temp: Architecture Axis
Arrangement of Seats
Location of Women's Section
Direction Prayer
Direction Toward Jerusalem
Coin
Coin Series
Coin Ruler
Coin Year
Denomination
Signature
Colophon
Fol. 1, title page: The colophon is written in square and semi-cursive Ashkenazi script in brown ink within an architectural full-page frame: סדר/ תקוני שבת/ מאיש האלקי קדוש יאמ'[ר]/ לו בוצינא קדישא נהור'[א]/ עמיה שריה כמהור'ר'/ יצחק לוריא ז"ל/ ונוסף על דגלו סדר מוצאי שבת/ ואלה מוסיף על הראשונים דיני הנה'[נין]/ ערב שבת ודיני קריאת שנים מקרא/ ואחד תרגום ודיני הדלקת הנרות/ ודיני יין לקדוש ודיני קדוש ואיזה/ מאמרים לזוהר וזמירות ודיני הבדל'[ה]/ עם ציורי[ם]' נאים/ נעשה פה פרששבורג/ בשנת/ תפז ל"ק. Translation: "Seder Tikkunei Shabbat, by the late Isaac Luria… with nice paintings was done here in Pressburg, in (5487=) 1726/7"
Scribal Notes
None.
Watermark
Hallmark
Group
Group
Group
Group
Group
Trade Mark
Binding

Binding: Red coloured parchment on cardboards. Gold tooled with a foliate frame containing an elaborate central piece and four corners of foliate motif. The spine is divided by five cords into sections; each of which is decorated by gold tooled foliate motif. The pastedowns in the inner front and back covers are purple and gold marble paper. Gilt edges.

The manuscript is kept in a red leather box, with two gold tooled dedicatory inscriptions in German and in Hebrew, placed one above the other on one side of the box. Each inscription is framed by gold tooled panel decorated at the corners by a foliate motif.

The German inscription reads: Seiner k.k. apostolischen Majestät Franz Josef I. in tieffster Ehrfurcht zu dero beglückenden Geburtstage a. 18. August 1855 dargebracht von dero allerergebensten Unterthan Moses Müller, hebräischer Kalligraf

The Hebrew inscription reads:

לכבוד אדונינו החסיד/ האדיר משיח ה' הקיסר/ פראנץ יאזעף/ הראשון יר"ה/ ליום לידתו ח"י אויגוסט/ תתנ"ה לפ"ק/ מאת עבדו המתבק בעפר רגליו משה מיללער סופר סת"ם:

"To his imperial royal apostolic mayesty Franz Josef I. in deepest awe to his joyful birthday on August 18th, 1855, given by his faith fullest servant Moses Müller, Hebrew calligraphy."

It should be noted that the Hebrew date  לפ"ק855 (=[5] 855) usually means the date for the Creation thus it suppose to be,2095 A.D. (855 + 1240), however in this inscription 855 is given without the 1000 years of 1855.

 

Decoration Program

The decoration made by one artist executed in pen and ink gray water-colours (grisaille) and gold powder.

 

I. Title page framed by a full-page baroque architectural setting (fol. 1)

II. Three illustrative panels framed by painted black borders: Sabbath Eve kiddush (fol. 17v), Elijah ascending to Heaven (fol. 44v) and Jacob wrestling with the Angel (fol. 46).

III.    Five initial word panels consist of baroque cartouches (fols. 4, 11, 19, 28v, 36v).

IV.    Small rosettes in brown ink partly at end-of-section signs on: e.g. fol. 9v and 53, beneath.

V.      A hand with a pointing index finger is depicted in the text space pointing to the next prayer, executed in the light brown ink of the text: (fols. 9v, 10v, 14, 15, 22v, 26v, 32v, 35v).

VI.    Gold fillet framing the text space on fols. 1- 50 (e.g. fols. 1, 4, 11, 17v). The gold is mostly flaked off leaving the green ground. Fols. 50v-57v are not framed.

 

Suggested Reconsdivuction
History/Provenance
A small single folded leaf bears a Latin inscription, is kept in the manuscript. It is stamped twice with the coat of arms of the Austrian eagle (one in blind tooled and again in gold tooled both one next to the other, at the upper left side of the leaf). A round ink stamp on the first flyleaf, on fol. 58v and on two last flyleaves, inscribed: Text: NATIONALBIBLIOTHEK OSTERR WIEN In August 18th 1855, the manuscript was presented to Franz Joseph I of Austria (b.18 August 1830, d. 21 November 1916) in honor of his birthday, by Moses Müller, a scribe, who signed his name on the binding in gold tooling. See Binding and Remarks.
Main Surveys & Excavations
Sources
אברהם נפתלי צבי רות, "הצייר העממי אהרון שרייבר-הרלינגן", ידע עם. במה לפולקלור יהודי, עורך: יום-טוב לוינסקי, כרך ה', א-ב, (21-22), עמ' 73 – 79. Fishof, Yakob Sofer mi-Berlin Fishof, I., "Yakob Sofer mi-Berlin: A Portrait of a Jewish Scribe", The Israel Museum Journal VI, (Jerusalem 1987), pp. 83-94 Lieberman,Sefer Tikkunei Shabbat Lieberman, H., “Sefer Tikkunei Shabbat”, Qiryat Sefer 38, Jerusalem 1963, pp. 401-415 (in Hebrew) Schwartz, Die hebräischen Handschriften Schwartz, A. Z., Die hebräischen Handschriften der Nationalbibliothek in Wien, Wien 1925, No. 94, pp. 95-96. Schrijver, Perek Shirah Schrijver E., "Perek Shirah, Companian Volume to the Facsimile Edition", An Eighteenth-century Illuminated Hebrew Book of Praise, ed. Jeremy Schonfiels, London 1996, pp. 15-38 Schubert, Jüdische Buchkunst Schubert Ursula, Jüdische Buchkunst, mit einer Historischen Einleitung von Kurt Schubert und einem Beitrag von Otto Mazal‎, Buchkunst im Wandel der Zeiten , Band 3/II, Graz, Austria 1992 Ernst Naményi, "La Miniature juive au XVIIe et au XVIIIe siécle", Revue Des Etudes Juives, vol. 116, 1957, pp. 27-71.
Type
Documenter
Alissa Fried Michal Sternthal | 1.1998 2.11.2000
Author of description
Michal Sternthal Yaffa levy | 2008 2008
Architectural Drawings
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Computer Reconstruction
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Section Head
Michal Sternthal | 2008
Language Editor
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Donor
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Negative/Photo. No.
The following information on this monument will be completed:
Unknown |