Mauro Pirani, a Professor in the University of Bologna,
recently discovered a treasure containing thousands of Hebrew
manuscripts hidden in the bindings of ancient notary tomes
that were preserved in the archives of the Spanish city of
Gerona.
This is one of several similar discoveries in recent years.
Apparently in Italy, where sifrei kodesh were
collected by the Inquisition and set ablaze, many manuscripts
endured.
Evidently, before the manuscripts reached the bonfires, the
binders would purchase them cheaply, in order to use them as
binding material. In that manner, hashgacha
safeguarded many manuscripts from destruction.
Research on this issue has been taking placeor a number of
years. Nonetheless, it is far from complete, even though even
before the discovery of the manuscripts in Gerona, over 7,000
texts were discovered after a systematic search in Italy's
archives and libraries.
According to the researchers, merely recording the
information about the tomes bound with Hebrew texts is a long
and arduous process. There are archives that include more
than thirty kilometers of shelves. In the second stage,
attempts are made to separate and to salvage the texts from
the bindings and send photocopies to the Sarmoneta Collection
in the Institute for the Photocopies of Hebrew Manuscripts in
the National Library of the Hebrew University in
Jerusalem.
The texts used for binding in Italy were transcribed on
parchment, generally on both sides. As a result, they must be
separated delicately and professionally.
In 3,000 pages found in the Modina region, the Hebrew writing
on the outer sides of the bindings was obliterated due to the
attempts of the binders to simulate the original, more
expensive parchment. Now attempts are being made to recover
the obliterated texts with the help of ultra-violet rays.
In this manner, important manuscripts, most of which were
written more than 500 years ago, were discovered in Italy.
Among them are pages from the early printing of the
Tanach in Bologna in 1482, and a Chumash with
meforshim printed in Spain in 1490.
The many pages discovered in Emilia, include hundreds of
pages from the Talmud Bavli, written on parchment more than
800 years ago, prior to the famous Munich manuscripts.
Most of these pages were found in the state archives in
Bologna, where important manuscripts of the Talmud Yerushami,
the Mishna and the Tosefta, which should help in the
clarification of various versions, were found. Additional
manuscripts are helpful in elucidating the precise version of
Rashi's commentary on Shas and Tanach.
Recently, an additional treasure of the "European Geniza" was
found in Gerona, the city of the Ramban.
Professor Mauro Pirani searched through the historical
archives and to his surprise discovered thousands of
additional Hebrew texts which had been pasted together in
order to form thick bindings for notary tomes between the
years 1330-1500.
The novel aspect of this finding, in addition to the
importance of the discovery of additional manuscripts, is its
early date. The 7,000 pages found in the bindings of European
archives date back 500 years ago, and these date back 700
years ago. It is hoped that the disclosure of important
manuscripts and their documentation will bring to the
discovery of additional ones.
Important, rare and unknown texts from the Italian Archives,
as well as photographs of the first findings of the Gerona
archives are currently on display in the National Library in
the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.
The exhibition is being subsidized by the Municipality of
Bologna and the Committee for the Preservation of
Mediterranean Culture, recently established by the Culture
Ministry of Italy.
The display includes manuscripts of Tanach, the Mishna,
Tosefta, Talmud Bavli and Yerushalmi, Mishna Torah of the
Rambam, and manuscripts of the commentaries of the Rishonim,
such as the commentary of the Har"i Kara on Tehillim,
a commentary on Nozir, which is different than the
printed commentary quoted in the name of Rashi in Bris
Yaakov (Livorno, 5060), Tosfos Rid on Eruvin, the
commentary of Rabbenu Eliakim ben Meshulam on Yoma and
others.
