Rare and Early Manuscripts of the Zohar
Unique Variations in Text!
Spain, Pre-Expulsion, 15th Century
Six handwritten pages written by expert scribes, containing portions from Sefer HaZohar on Chumash Shemos (Parshas Vayakhel), as transmitted by Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai.
These important manuscripts were written in Spain in the 15th century for the Sephardic kabbalists who were masters of the Hidden Torah. They were written many years before the printing of the Zohar.
Early manuscripts of the Zohar, especially from Spain before the expulsion, are few and extremely rare!!
The Zohar was printed in two different versions: The Mantua edition, which became the standard accepted text, and the Cremona edition.
The present manuscript bears a resemblance to the Mantua edition, yet contains slight differences.
This manuscript’s unique textual version, slightly different from the Mantua edition, is of unparalleled importance in refining and establishing the most precise version of the Zohar!
Following the first revelation of the Zohar in Spain at the end of the 13th century, the sefer spread rapidly throughout the Jewish world and was especially cherished and studied by the kabbalists of Spain, where it became a classic sefer in their study of kabbalah. It remained a cornerstone of Torah study in Spain until the tragic Expulsion in the late 15th century.
The great Sephardic kabbalist, Rabbi Yehuda Chayat, who lived during or very near to the period in which these papers were written, wrote in his introduction to ‘Sefer ‘Ma’areches HaElokus’:
"Fortunate are we and how good is our portion, that we merited to have the Sefer HaZohar, something that our early predecessors were not privileged to have… And in its merit, those who engage in its study will hasten the coming of Mashiach, as ‘the earth will be filled with knowledge of Hashem’ through it."
Spain, 15th century.
Page count: [3] leaves, written in both sides.
Size: Large format – 31 cm.
Condition: The papers were removed from the "Binding Geniza" and their condition is consistent with such. Missing text has been restored with paper completions.
Attached is a professional evaluation by a research scholar on kabbalah, Rabbi Yosef Avivi, who writes:
"A meticulous comparison of the leaves before us with the printed editions of the Zohar is of immense significance in establishing the precise and most authentic text of Sefer HaZohar."
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The first paper is found in the Mantua edition on leaves 202a – 203a.
The second paper is found there on leaves 205a – 206a.
The third paper is found there on leaves 206a – 207b.
