Derashot al ha-Torah, Joshua ibn Shuaib, Constantinople: Shelomo ben Mazzal-Tov, 1523

124 leaves (10½ x 7 in.; 267 x 178 mm). Double leaf signatures; collation: 1^{7, 2-138, 146, 158, 167=124 leaves; lacking 2 folios in quire 14 (first and last few quires dampstained, some spotting throughout, upper outer corner of last two quires mended with loss of text, portion of top and bottom margin of last leaf renewed; owners' inscriptions on endpapers. Cream cloth.}

Vinograd, Constantinople 131; Yaari, Constantinople, 97

124 leaves (10½ x 7 in.; 267 x 178 mm). Double leaf signatures; collation: 17, 2-138, 146, 158, 167=124 leaves; lacking 2 folios in quire 14 (ff.first and last few quires dampstained, some spotting throughout, upper outer corner of last two quires mended with loss of text, portion of top and bottom margin of last leaf renewed; owners' inscriptions on endpapers. Cream cloth.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Homilies on the Torah and holidays by Joshua ibn Shuaib (early 14th century). Ibn Shuaib, a member of an aristocratic family of Tudela, was a student of Solomon ben Abraham Adret (Rashba), whom he frequently references in this work.

These homilies, based on sermons delivered by ibn Shuaib, retain the richness and texture of an oral discourse. With few exceptions, each sermon begins with a biblical verse, often interpreted literally, allegorically, or in a midrashic manner. Ibn Shuaib, displays an encyclopedic knowledge of traditional literature, quoting from a wide variety of sources including both the Babylonian and Jerusalem Talmuds, Midrashim, a variety of halakhic works and midrashim, many of which are no longer extant and which are known to us only from this work. He was unusually well-versed in the Kabbalah, and quotes from the Sefer Yezirah, Sefer ha-Bahir, and the Zohar, as well as from kabbalistic passages in the bible commentary of Nahmanides.

Although we may suppose that the volume was meant to have a title-page based on the collation, the bibliographer Abraham Ya'ari has noted that no known copy of this work has such a page. It seems that the title page was never printed and the work was distributed without it. This also accounts for the complete absence of ibn Shuaib's name from this edition