Zeidah la-Derekh (Provisions for the Way), Menahem ben Aaron ibn Zerah, Ferrara: Abraham ibn Usque, 1554

300 leaves (7 3/8 x 5 1/8 in.; 187 x 130 mm). collation: 1-3^{4, 42,1-84, 9(signed 10)2,114, 11(repeated)4, 12-72 4 =300 leaves. Woodcut architectural title border with printer's device in center, device repeated on final leaf; fore-edge of title frayed and top edge shaved, fore-edge of second leaf mended affecting a few letters, fore-edge of third leaf frayed with slight loss, some spotting and dampstaining, a few worm holes in last 2 quires affecting letters. Seventeenth-century calf over beveled oak boards, blind-tooled in a panel design with arabesque medallion stamped in central panel; rebacked, edges worn, gouge in top edge of upper cover, a few worm punctures, clasps gone, endpapers renewed.}

Vinograd, Ferrara 30; Mehlman 714.
N.B.The published collations in Mehlman and Vinograd : [14], 32 [3], 38-39 [1], 41-75 [212], record only 212 unnumbered pages in the final section rather than the 213 which are present here. Those copies would seem to be lacking the recurrence of Usque's famous armillary sphere printer's device which appears in the present lot on the final leaf along with a brief colophon.

300 leaves (7 3/8 x 5 1/8 in.; 187 x 130 mm). collation: 1-34, 42,1-84, 9(signed 10)2,114, 11(repeated)4,12-72 4 =300 leaves. Woodcut architectural title border with printer's device in center, device repeated on final leaf; fore-edge of title frayed and top edge shaved, fore-edge of second leaf mended affecting a few letters, fore-edge of third leaf frayed with slight loss, some spotting and dampstaining, a few worm holes in last 2 quires affecting letters. Seventeenth-century calf over beveled oak boards, blind-tooled in a panel design with arabesque medallion stamped in central panel; rebacked, edges worn, gouge in top edge of upper cover, a few worm punctures, clasps gone, endpapers renewed.
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A concise code of law, unique in that it is directed towards the wealthier strata of Jewish society. The parents of the author, Menahem ben Aaron ibn Zerah (c. 1310–1385), were among the Jews expelled from France in 1306, settling in Estella, Navarre, where Menahem was born. In the introduction to Zeidah la-Derekh, he relates how the population rose against the Jewish community of Estella in 1328, massacring 6,000, among them his parents and four younger brothers. He was left for dead, but a knight, a friend of his father, found him, removed him from among the dead, brought him home and nursed him back to health. He subsequently went to Alcala de Henarez (in the vicinity of Toledo), where he studied under Joseph ben al-Aysh, whom he succeeded as rabbi in 1361. Eight years later a civil war between two aspirants to the throne left Menahem impoverished. The courtier, Don Samuel Abrabanel, interceded on his behalf and Menahem was appointed rabbi of Toledo and head of the rabbinical academy.

Menahem composed Zeidah la-Derekh for the honor and benefit of Don Samuel, whom Menahem praises in the introduction. The book was specifically directed towards the courtier class among Iberian Jewry, who, because of their responsibilities and lifestyle, including social intercourse with non-Jews, were not always rigorous in the performance of mitzvot, nor were they possessed of ample time to delve in and study the more comprehensive codes then in circulation. This code, therefore, is directed towards the practical accomplishment of the halakhah as implied by its name, Zeidah la-Derekh (provisions for the way ). In addition to its halakhic content, Zeidah la-Derekh provides philosophical and moral precepts, and medical advice, and the rationale for the performance of commandments.