mahzor according to roman rite, manuscript on vellum, two volumes, [Italy: 14th-15th century]

Daniel Goldschmidt, "Minhag Benei Roma" in Samuel David Luzatto, Mavo le-Mabzor Benei Roma be-Ziruf bi'urim u-sekirah al ha-minhag me-'et Daniel Goldschmidt, Tel Aviv: 1966; Eleazar Birnbaum, "Mahzor Roma: the Cluj Manuscript Dated 5159 a.m./1399 c.e. and the Public Fast in Rome in 1321 c.e." Jewish Quarterly Review, LXXVI, No. 2 (October, 1985) pp. 59-95.

This elegant, broad-margined Mahzor, written in accordance with the Roman rite is a splendid example of a personal prayer volume created by an accomplished scribe before the advent of the printed book.  In addition to providing the owner with the obvious practical benefit of being able to fulfill religious obligations of prayer, high quality liturgical manuscripts were also a valuable commodity that could, if necessary, be sold to provide needed funds.  Parchment was used in preference to paper due to its durability; a manuscript produced on parchment was expected to survive beyond the lifetime of the original owner and be passed down to future generations as a treasured keepsake.

The liturgical rite of the Jews of Rome was among the first texts to be published by Hebrew printers in the late fifteenth century but the Roman rite itself reflects a much older tradition that had already existed in manuscript for centuries. Manuscripts such as the present lot, reflect an early stage in the development of the Roman rite and several important piyyutim, or liturgical poems are included here that are unknown in the printed Mahzor Roma, including several that are not found in Israel Davidson's Thesaurus of Medieval Hebrew Poetry.  In addition, these volumes contain numerous variations from those later printed editions. On the other hand, there are a number of important similarities that clearly link this manuscript to other early exemplars of this liturgical tradition.

The first volume includes prayers for weekdays, Sabbaths, New Moons and Festivals and the four biblically ordained fast days. Also included are prayers and blessings for a variety of life-cycle events such as weddings, circumcisions, mourning and the like. Volume two comprises the liturgy for Rosh ha-Shanah and Yom Kippur as well as special supplications to be recited before and during the High Holiday season. The meticulous penmanship extends beyond the vocalized liturgical text and even the instructions and explanatory remarks inserted by the original scribe are written in an exacting fashion, in a clear and precise hand. One of these remarks bears special mention as it is indicative of a custom that is local to the Jewish community of Rome. On f.147r (vol.I) we find the following statement: "This is the order of public prayer said in Rome on 21 Nisan, [in the]year [50]81(June 18, 1321), when the messengers of the community traveled to the court."  The historical record reveals that in 1321, Pope John XXII, at the behest of his sister, ordered the expulsion of all Jews from Roman territory. The Jews of Rome instituted a day of fasting and sent a delegation to Avignon to the papal court, where they were able to avert the planned expulsion by means of a 20,000 ducat payment, made according to some sources, to the Pope's sister. The public fast day that was instituted in Rome in that year was subsequently commemorated for centuries on the same date.

Another noteworthy feature is found on f.43r (vol.II) in the Rosh ha-Shanah liturgy. Underneath the letters that represent the names of the various sounds of the shofar (ram's horn) we find pictographic symbols as well.  These visual representations of the aural shofar blasts reflect an early tradition, already found in the 11th century manuscript of Siddur Mizraim, in The Library of The Jewish Theological Seminary.  As most of the known manuscript copies of the Roman rite mahzor are from the fifteenth century or later, the present volumes provide us with a valuable link in tracing the evolution of the traditions of Roman Jewry.