AUTHOR: MAIMONIDES

LANGUAGE: HEBREW

DATE: 1300-1350 AD

PAGE #:470

REPRODUCTION DIMENSIONS:

View in the free digital library

HISTORY/DESCRIPTION:THIS MANUSCRIPT IS WIDELY CONSIDERED THE MOST SPLENDID OF THE EXTANT MANUSCRIPTS OF THE MISHNEH TORAH, THE SYSTEMATIC CODE OF JEWISH LAW PRODUCED BY THE 12TH CENTURY JEWISH PHILOSOPHER, THEOLOGIAN, AND PHYSICIAN, MOSES BEN MAIMON, BETTER KNOWN AS MAIMONIDES. MAIMONIDES WAS BORN IN CORDOBA, SPAIN IN 1135. OM 1160 HE MOVED WITH HIS FAMILY TO FEZ, MOROCCO, TO ESCAPE RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION, AND EVENTUALLY SETTLED IN CAIRO, WHERE HE BECAME THE PERSONAL PHYSICIAN TO THE SULTAN AND HIS FAMILY. HE ALSO SERVED AS THE HEAD OF THE JEWISH COMMUNITY OF CAIRO, WHERE HE DIED IN 1204. HIS WORKS ON THEOLOGY, LAW, PHILOSOPHY, AND MEDICINE, MOSTLY WRITTEN IN ARABIC AND TRANSLATED INTO HEBREW, LATIN, AND OTHER LANGUAGES, WERE WIDELY INFLUENTIAL IN BOTH THE JEWISH AND NON-JEWISH WORLDS.

THE MISHNEH TORAH, 1350, WAS MADE BY A COPYIST FROM SPAIN, WHO COMMISSIONED AN ARTIST TO ILLUSTRATE THE WORK AND LEFT SPACE IN THE MARGINS FOR DRAWINGS, DECORATIVE PANELS, AND ILLUMINATIONS. THE ARTWORK WAS DONE IN ITALY, POSSIBLY IN THE WORKSHOP OF MATEO DE SER CAMBIO IN PERUGIA, CIRCA 1400. A FEW ORNAMENTAL HEADINGS AND SIGNS OF TEXTUAL DIVISIONS WERE DONE IN SPAIN. MANY IMPORTANT TEXTUAL CHANGES IN THE MARGINS OF THE MANUSCRIPT CORRESPOND TO THOSE FOUND IN THE VERSION OF THIS WORK PROOFREAD BY MAIMONIDES HIMSELF.

REPRODUCTION DETAILS: OUR HARDCOVER BOOKS ARE MADE WITH REAL WOOD FOR THE INTERIOR OF THE FRONT AND BACK COVERS AS WELL AS THE SPINE. THE LEATHER IS A 4 OZ COWHIDE, FROM A SMALL SUPPLIER IN NORTH CAROLINA. THE LEATHER IS ADHERED TO THE COVERS WITH GLUE AND MOLDED INTO THE SHAPE AT THE HAND OF OUR LOCAL ARTISANS. THE SIGNATURES/PAGES ARE HANDSEWN USING A LIBRARY BINDING METHOD. THE SEWN BOOK IS BOUND WITH A STRONG ADHESIVE GLUE THAT MAKES THE BINDINGS LAST, ESPECIALLY FOR THE LARGER BOOKS. WE ALSO ADD A THICK MULL CLOTH TO THE OUTSIDE OF THE BINDING, DRYING IN BETWEEN EACH LAYER, A TRADITIONAL WAY TO MAKE THE BINDING STIFF, STRONG, AND RESILIENT FOR GENERATIONS TO COME.

NOTE: ALL OF OUR FACSIMILES ARE MADE TO ORDER. PLEASE ALLOW 4-6 WEEKS FOR NOTIFICATION OF SHIPMENT.