Img. ID: 208361
Fol. 1: The title המקום היותר טוב אל הצופים והיותר נכון הוא המקום הגבוה (the place which is better and more appropriate for the spectators is the high place) opening the text is flanked by two large serrated leaves, on which two birds are perched. The leaves support two small trees and issue from a thin stem which frames the title on either side.
Perhaps the depiction of the birds perched high alludes to the high place mentioned in the title.
It is interesting to note that a similar depiction decorating the title appears in Leon Joseph's translation of the Commentary on al-Mansuri produced inMurciain 1443 and now preserved inCincinnati(HUC MS 918, fol. 1v). In this manuscript the title is surrounded by pen-work decoration creating a foliate frame above the title, on which two birds are perched. Thus, the decoration of the foliage and birds in our manuscript was not a randomly chosen subject, but probably derived from another manuscript which served as its model (see remarks in General Document).