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© Biblioteca Angelica, Photographer: Setter, Mario, 2021, Negative/Photo. No. M003116.
Name/Title
Biblioteca Angelica Coat of Arms Esther Scroll | Unknown
Object Detail
benedictions sheet (cols. 2-4)
Date
2 March 1662 (11 Adar 5422)
Synagogue active dates
Reconstruction dates
Artist/ Maker
Unknown (Unknown)
Origin
Historical Origin
Unknown
Community
Unknown |
Location
Unknown |
Site
Unknown
School/Style
Unknown|
Period
Period Detail
Collection
Italy | Rome | Biblioteca Angelica
| Ms. or. 87
Category
Material/Technique
Ink and paints on parchment + wood
Material Stucture
Material Decoration
Material Bonding
Material Inscription
Material Additions
Material Cloth
Material Lining
Tesserae Arrangement
Density
Colors
Construction material
Measurements
The scroll is 5200 mm long.
Height
Length
Width
Depth
Circumference
Thickness
Diameter
Weight
Axis
Panel Measurements
Condition

The manuscript is well preserved, although some paints in the opening decoration have flaked off.

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
Description

Each of the benedictions occupies a single arcade and starts with an enlarged and bolded word ברוך – "blessed". The arcades are bordered with a decorative frame composed of floral motifs and between the arcades, small birds appear. Above the central arcade, there is an elongated crown inscribed in Hebrew כתר תורה - "crown of Torah".

Custom
Contents

The Book of Esther in Hebrew with a separate benedictions sheet containing benedictions and a liturgical poem for Purim festival

Codicology

The scroll is formed of 7 sheets containing 32 columns of the text with 19 lines, except for col. 28 with 11 lines divided into two parts.

The number of columns of the text per membrane: no. 1 - 4, no. 2 - 5, no. 3 - 5, no. 4 - 6, no. 5 - 5, no. 6 - 5, no. 7 - 3.

The text is inscribed in the Hebrew Italian square script with tagin (in some places, taginwere omitted) in intense black and shiny ink on the parchment membranes.

The letter ח (Es. 1:6) is highlighted by its form - it is formed of two elements joined with a roof, it is enlarged and decorated with scrolling feet. The letter of the same shape appears also in col. 9 in the word חמה (Es. 3:9). And once again in the same word in col. 16 (Es. 5:9). The letter ת (Es. 9:29) is enlarged and bolded. Other enlarged and diminished letters are included in col. 28, especially the last line of this column is inscribed in extra large and bolded letters. The first line of this column is inscribed on the upper margin.

In the text, the letters פ and ף with a small tendril inside appear. Similarly in the words Haman in cols. 16 and 21, the letter ן is decorated with a small tendril.

Large parts of the text were erased and corrected.

The ruling - horizontal and vertical lines - is made with a hardpoint along with the membranes.

The pricking is invisible.

The membranes in the scroll are stitched together.

Benedictions are inscribed in the Hebrew square Italian-Sephardi script, except for the last column that is written in cursive script.

Every benediction and Purim poems start with an enlarged and bolded words (קוראי, ארור, ברוך), written separately from the rest of the texts.

The benedictions contain a ligature of א and ל letters. The Tetragrammaton is replaced by a composition of two letters י with an elongated and bent flag of ל letter and a leg of א letter.

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
Signature
Colophon
Scribal Notes

The elongated cartouche in the opening decoration is filled with a Hebrew inscription by the owner:

קניין כמ''ר משה יצ''ו בן

מה...אר כמ''ר יוסף מלומונטי יצ''ו

יא לחודש אדר התכב

The elongated cartouche on the benediction sheet is filled with a Hebrew inscription by the scribe, Josef ben Moses Malomonte (or Melo Monte):

Watermark
Trade Mark
Binding
Decoration Program
Summary and Remarks

Some details in the opening decoration are painted in gold.

A similar wooden roller accompanies the scroll BCM 90, Braginsky Collection, Zurich.

Scrolls decorated with a similar opening decoration are stored in private and institutional collections, e.g. Braginsky Collection in Zurich, Jewish Museum of Rome.

The benedictions inscribed on separate decorated sheets were typical for Jewish communities of the Apennine Peninsula.

History/Provenance

The original owner of the manuscript was Moses ben Josef Malomonte (or Melo Monte).

The manuscript was purchased by the Biblioteca Angelica between 1873 and 1898.

Main Surveys & Excavations
Bibliography

The scroll is presented in the video: https://vimeo.com/330873915 (accessed 22.12.2020).

No other bibliography on the manuscript is available.

A similar scroll is described in:

A Journey through Jewish Worlds: Highlights from the Braginsky Collection of Hebrew Manuscripts and Printed Books, eds. Evelyn M. Cohen, Emile Schrijver, Sharon Liberman Mintz, Amsterdam 2009, 238-239.

Short Name
Full Name
Volume
Page
Type
Documenter
Dagmara Budzioch | 2021
Researcher
Dagmara Budzioch | 2021
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