Tikkun Sefer Torah. Amsterdam, 1659

Spectacular edition in ornate antique leather binding and silver clasps

Chamish Chumshei Torah, with the Five Megillos and Haftaros for the entire year, in Ashkenazic and Sephardic rite. Precisely edited and proofread for utmost accuracy.

Extraordinarily beautiful Chumash, printed in clear font on thick, high-quality paper, with an ornate title page of five copperplate illustrations depicting episodes from Tanach.

The Chumash is encased in an impressive shiny leather over wood binding, with delicate engravings and silver clasps.

Gilded edges are artistically decorated with hand-painted red and green leaves.

The Art of Marginal Illustrated Fore-Edges

One unique form of bookbinding art in previous eras was handmade artistic illustrations on the edges of a book (known as Fore-edge). The craft took place by placing a book beneath a high-pressure roller to eliminate any space or air between the pages, and the artist would then draw or paint on its edges.

The Attias Chumash

This Chumash is regarded as one of the most precise Chumashim. In their preface, the proofreaders boast of their precise work and commend the accuracy and precision of this meticulously reviewed edition of Chumash. They describe that each page was proofread three times before printing, and an additional time after printing.

The famous Jewish grammarian Rabbi Ezriel of Vilna praises this edition in his preface to Michtav Me’Eliyahu (Homburg, 1738), leaf 3b, .

Joseph Attias – Jewish Printer of Amsterdam

This Chumash was the first sefer printed by the famous Jewish printer Joseph Attias of Amsterdam.

Joseph Attias (1635-1700) was born in Spain to a family of anusim. His father R’ Avraham (Jorge Mendez de Castro) sacrificed his life al Kiddush Hashem and perished in an auto-de-fe in Córdoba. Young Joseph escaped and fled to Amsterdam where he established a printing press at the age of only 23.

In 1661, he was accepted into the prestigious Association of Printers of Amsterdam, and his press soon gained reputation as one of the most prominent presses in the world.

(See Haberman, Hamadpis HaAmsterdami Joseph Attias pp. 293-310.)

Amsterdam, 1659. Joseph Attias Press. Page Count: [4], 234: [2], 235-380 leaves. Page size: 18.3 cm. Additional Information: Separate title page for Haftaros. Condition: Good. Preserved in matching case.

Provenance: The William Gross collection – Tel Aviv.