[Austerlitz Memorbuch].
[אויסטרליץ ממורבוך].

Format:

Book

Manuscript

Contributor:

Klagsbald, Victor, former owner.

Language:

Hebrew

Subjects (All):

Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor, 1578-1637--Prayers.

Eleonora, consort of Vincenzo I Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua, 1569-1611--Prayers.

Excommunication (Jewish law).

Jews--Czech Republic--Slavkov u Brna--17th century--History--Sources.

Jews--Czech Republic--Slavkov u Brna--18th century--History--Sources.

Jews--Czech Republic--Slavkov u Brna--19th century--History--Sources.

Manuscripts, Hebrew--Czech Republic--Slavkov u Brna--17th century--Specimens.

Genre:

Manuscripts, European.

illuminated manuscripts

codices (bound manuscripts)

benedictionals

calligraphy (visual works)

Prayers.

Manuscripts.

Penn Provenance:

Sold by Kedem Auctions (Jerusalem), Auction 102 (5 June 2025) lot 5 (as part of the collection of Victor Klagsbald).

Physical Description:

27 leaves : parchment, illuminations ; 230 x 150 (185 x 100) mm bound to 240 x 154 mm

Place of Publication:

[Slavkov u Brna, Czech Republic], [1575?-1811?].

Language Note:

Hebrew.

Summary:

The memorbuch for the community of Austerlitz, dating from early 17th century (with a portion of the excommunication texts likely dating to the late 16th century), and the Memorbuch portion continually written in until at least 1811; the opening leaves of the manuscript are of the communal benedictions recited at the time the Yizkor names were pronounced, during the closing of the ark, following the Torah reading on select Sabbaths or Holidays, and occasional pronouncements (such as excommunications, or communal fasts); the liturgical texts in the manuscript follow the rite of eastern Ashkenaz (like much of Moravia during the 17th century) and the excommunications texts and ceremonies, such as the bearing of false witness, taking false oaths, and informing on fellow Jews, may be unique to Austerlitz (f. 10r-11v, dating from the 16th century, possibly removed from another codex).

Contents:

1. f.1r-v: ʻAl ha-kol yitḳadash

2. f.2r-v: Yekum purkan

3. f.2v-3r: Mi she-berakh avotenu

4. f.3r: Mi she-ʻaśah nisim

5. f.3r-v: Av ha-raḥamim

6. f.4r: Mi she-berakh... ba-ʻavur she-notnim nedavah be-khol ʻerev Shabat, ṿe-ʻerev Yom Tov le-ḳupah shel tsedaḳah... 7. f. 4r: Le-varekh li-fene ha-taʻanit sheni ṿa-ḥamishi ṿe-sheni

8. f. 4v: Le-varekh kesheha-ḳahal ḳovʻim taʻanit ʻal pi ha-rav

9. f.4v-5r: Birkhat ha-ḥoli

10. f.5r-5v: Le-varekh la-yoledet

11. f.5v: [Benediction for incarcerated community members]

12: f. 6r-v: Ha-Elohim asher bara et ha-shamayim ṿe-et ha-arets ve-khol tsevaʼam [...] hu ye-varekh et adonenu ha-meyuḥas me-od ha-Ḳesar Romi [...] Ṿerdinandus [Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor] ṿe-et ishto ha-malkah Lenearo [Eleonora Gonzaga] ...

13. f.6v-7r: Mi she-berakh avotenu [...] hu yi-varekh [...] kol ish ṿe-ishah she-nizharim me-yayin she-aseru ḥakhamim [...]

14. f. 7r: Mi she-berakh avotenu [...] ve-kho ha-tsadiḳim ha-nizharim mile-daber be-Bet ha-kenest mi-teḥilat Barukh she-amar ṿe-Pesuke de-zimrah ube-shaʻah sheha-ḳahal ṿeha-shaliaḥ tsibur mitpalel Shemoneh ʻeśreh [...]

15. f. 7v: Mi she-berakh [...] ba-ʻavur she-nadar tsedaḳah be-ʻad ha-neshamot she-hizkir ha-yom [...]

16. f. 8r: Mi she-berakh [...] hu yi-varekh adonenu ha-meyuḥas me-od ha-Gravn yar.h. Oleani [Gräfin Eneanore von Kaunitz?] ṿe-et adonenu ha-grav Maḳsimilian [Graf Maximilian von Kaunitz], otam ṿe-et zarʻam...

17. f.8v-9r: Ḥaramim be-ḳitsur

18. f.10r-11v: Ḥerem shel Yehoshuaʻ ben Nun

19. f.12r-27r: Yizkor [Memorbuch portion].

Notes:

Ms. codex.

Title supplied by cataloger.

Collation: Parchment, i (paper free-end) + 27 + i (paper free-end) ; 1⁶⁽⁻⁶⁾ (leaf 1.6 cancelled) 2⁴ (2.4v blank) 3-4⁴ 5² 6-7⁴ (7.4v blank); modern foliation in pencil, 1-27, lower left recto.

Layout: Written in 20 lines (liturgical portion, until f. 10, with some folios with half or blank lines to accomodate large versals built-in to paragraphs), line-ruled in drypoint; and 25-26 lines (oldest portion, f. 10r-11v), frame-ruled in drypoint on rectos.

Script: Written in a 17th century Ashkenazic square script, with instructions in a 17th century Ashkenazic semicursive script, all in a scribal hand (f.1r-9r); the oldest portion written in a 16th century semicursive Ashkenazic script (in a distinctive scribal hand; circa 1575-1600; f. 10r-11v); and the final Yizkor portion written in cursive and semicursive scripts (ranging from the early 17th century to the early 19th century).

Binding: Dark leather on wooden boards (with blind-tooled matching patterns), with a metal clasp on each board; spine later leather (wearing, opening at top); endpapers laid paper.

Decoration: Illuminated versals ("על" inhabited with billows and flora, with a knot-pattern though the upper ligature of the lamed, and gilded (f.1r) and drawn calligraphy (f. 8v) and in earlier calligraphy (f. 10r) ; "יקום" drawn in blue, and painted gilt (f.2r); "יקום" "מי" drawn in red and green, and painted gilt (f. 2v) ; "מי" and "אב" gilded, and outlined in green (f. 3r) ; and "מי" painted in gilt (f. 4r) and repeated again painted in greens (f. 4v-5v, and f. 6v-7v and painted and inhabited on f. 8r), all in an Ashkenazic square calligraphic style; "האלהים" painted in gilt, with a flourish above the letter ל, with a drawing of an eagle, carrying the letter י with feathers (f. 6r).

Origin: Written in Austerlitz in Moravia (today Slavkov u Bruna, Czech Republic, southeast of Brno), based on the presence of a benediction for the House of Kaunitz, who ruled Austerlitz from the Austerlitz (today Slavkov) Castle (f. 8r) and the mention of Austerlitz rabbis (Issachar Baer ben Israel Leiser Parnas Eylenburg (died in Austerlitz 1623) is on f. 14v; gift of Elḳel, widow of Avraham Natan, rabbi in Austerlitz and Hotzenplotz (d. 1724; today Osoblaha, Czech Republic; f. 16r); Uri Lipmann Nikolsburger, rabbi in Austerlitz, signed his name as 'here in Austerlitz' (f. 19r; "חופ"ק אויסטרליץ"; he signed an anti-Sabbatean letter in 1724-5, documented in: Maimon, J.L. Arim ve-amhot bi-Yisra'el, volume 4, page 296) and written in until approximately 1811 (date of death for Jakob Gleiwitz (romanized Yaʻaḳov Glaiṿits), mentioned on f. 26v); the benediction for the monarch originally mentioned Matthias, Holy Roman Emperor (his reign 1612-1619) and his spouse Anna of Tyrol, but was later erased and written over with Ferdinand II and Eleanora Gonzaga following their marriage in 1622 (f. 6r).

Cited as:

Austerlitz Memorbuch (UPenn CAJS Rar Ms 778). Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts, University of Pennsylvania.

Contains:

Yekum purkan.

ʻAl ha-kol yitḳadash.

Av ha-raḥamim.

Mi she-berakh.

Mi she-ʻaśah nisim.

OCLC:

1528016089