Beschreibung:

Megillat Esther (Scroll of Esther for the Festival of Purim), manuscript on vellum within highly decorative printed borders, 165 x 1666mm., 4 membranes sewn together, text written in 11 columns, Italian square without Nikud (vowel points), the text (starting in the second column) divided by printed floral designs, the first and last particularly elaborate, these and the upper and lower printed borders hand-coloured in green, orange, purple, blue and light brown illustrating the story of Esther, with details of Italian dress and architecture, repaired tear at the beginning, small piece missing and supplied in later hand, some smaller defects to edges, preserved in later gilt-stamped sheep cylindrical case, Italy, [early 18th century]. ⁂ An important and early Italian Megillah. A variant of this scroll was sold twice in 2000, where in both cases the illustrations were set in poly-lobed spheres above and below the text, whereas in this copy they are within rectangular boxes (Sotheby's New York, December 2, 2000, The Furman sale of Judaica, lot 91; and Sotheby's Tel Aviv, October 25, 2000, lot 204). The two types of scroll are closely related and both printed borders were produced in Italy, most likely in the first decades of the 18th century, although possibly as early as the end of the 17th century. Bibliography: Heinrich Frauberger, Verzierte Hebraische Schrift und Judischer Buchschmuck , Frankfurt a/M, October 1909, pp.5 and 11, plate 4.Michael Zagayski Sale Catalogue, New York, 27/28 January 1970, lot 208 and plate for a similar scroll but of different dimensions and with text written in 10 columns not 11. Ernest Namenyi in Jewish Art , edited by Cecil Roth, pp.467-471.