Obj. ID: 38205
Jewish printed books Shevet Musar by Eliyahu ben Avraham Shlomo Hacohen, Istanbul, 1738
This text was prepared by William Gross:
Shevet Musar, a Kabbalistic, moral, and ethical text by R. Elijah b. Abraham Solomon ha-Kohen ha-Itamari (<1640-1729). He was born in Smyrna, where he was educated by R. Benjamin Melamed (he recods the eulogy in Midrash Elijah), a leading Rabbi of Izmir (Smyrna) and became a homiletic preacher. R. Elijah's opposition to Shabbetai Zevi and his associates earned him much grief at home. He apparently cared for orphans as his writings display an extremely detailed knowledge of the physical and psychological suffering of the poor. A prolific writer he is best remembered for his ethical work Shevet Mussar (Rod of Admonition), which has seen numerous editions and been translated into many languages. The first edition of Shevet Mussar was issued in Constantinople in 1712.
Ornate frontispiece showing an architectural gateway with multiple columns on either side, a balustrade of short columns above, and flowers below. The same frontispiece is used on B.778. There are glosses in the book.
This volume was issued by Yonah ben Ya’akov of Zalazitz, also known as Yonah ha-Ashkenazi, the person who re-initiated printing activity in Istanbul during the 18th century. A Jewish refugee from Poland, Yonah b. Ya’akov was the foremost Ottoman printer of his day, and was responsible for 188 of the c.210 books that were printed in Istanbul during this time. His printing house published some of the most important books that were written in that time. He was also one of the Jewish printers who assisted the Turks in founding the first Ottoman printing house.
Yonah b. Ya’akov founded his press in Istanbul, but was forced to move it to the Ortaköy suburb after a fire which broke out in the capital in 1712. Seven years later he was able to return and establish his enterprise in Istanbul.
In 1728 he founded a branch of his press in Izmir which was active for eleven years, and printed more than 30 books there. During the same period he printed 60 books in Istanbul. Due to another fire in 1740, Yonah b. Ya’akov’s activities were again interrupted. He resumed printing in 1742 in partnership with his sons, who continued to print for more than thirty years after his death in 1745.