Subject: Rabbinic Literature

A Hebrew broadside printed in New York City in 1862. It features a responsum from Rabbi Joseph Saul Nathanson of Lvov (Lemberg) to Rabbi Judah Yudel Middleman of New York concerning Kashrut matters, specifically addressing a dispute over the draining of blood from cattle before slaughter. The broadside includes decorative printed borders and is addressed to Rabbi Middleman at 70 Mott Street, New York.

A letter from A. I. Isaacs to Sabato Morais, dated November 3, 1873, from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Isaacs returns proof sheets for Morais' sermon, which Isaacs has titled "The Judaism of the Present."

Four-page letter dated November 4, 1850, from Simha Hirsch of Philadelphia to Isaac Leeser. Hirsch discusses a theological controversy between Leeser and a Charleston rabbi concerning the interpretation of "I will be what I will be" (Exodus 3:14). Hirsch, a layman, offers his own scholarly interpretation of the passage, presenting Talmudic arguments and conclusions. The letter displays a humble tone despite Hirsch's clear learning and engagement with the debate between two prominent religious leaders. It is speculated that the Charleston rabbi involved was the reformer Rev. G. Poznanski of Beth Elohim.

A letter dated 1851 expressing gratitude to Sir Moses Montefiore for a donation sent from New York to aid the poor of Jerusalem. The letter bears the signatures of prominent Jerusalem Rabbis and community leaders, including Rabbi Yitzchak Kobo, Rabbi Yeshaya Bardaki, Rabbi David Tevele Berlin, and Reb Nissan Bak. The letter was likely docketed by Sir Moses Montefiore's secretary upon receipt.

Manuscript copy book containing letters and commentary debating the permissibility of post-mortem examinations according to Jewish law. The letters, primarily from April 1856, include correspondence from various individuals, notably a letter from Chief Rabbi Nathan Adler of London and rebuttals from American scholars. The copy book also includes six pages of commentary not derived from the copied letters. The cover features a pasted title from the *Occident*, June 1856. The internal first page is dated June 17, 1886, and signed by Dr. M. Mielziner (Professor, Hebrew Union College); however, the majority of the book is in a different hand and ink. The book includes a letter from T.J. Sexias of Jew's Hospital in NYC (April 7, 1856), Rabbi Illowy of St. Louis (April 6, 1856), and an unsigned rebuttal to Chief Rabbi Adler. A two-column clipping from the 1896 *Israelite* by Dr. M. Mielziner is pasted on the final page. The book may have been compiled by Isaac Leeser, possibly in preparation for publication in the *Occident*.

This manuscript, written by Isaac Leeser, is an 8" x 6" page in English and Hebrew. Leeser notes that he found the Hebrew text in 1806 within a manuscript in the possession of the Rabbi of Berlin, dating back to the 16th century. The Hebrew text itself is in fine block letters with points and contains the year 5601 (1841), marking the beginning of a new 28-year Hebrew solar cycle. The significance of this date in relation to the manuscript's content requires further investigation. The manuscript was found among other Leeser papers and has been reviewed by Dr. Arthur Kiron and Bruce Nielsen at the Katz Center, University of Pennsylvania.

Part II of *Or Torah*, a multi-part work on ethics printed between 1841 and 1859. This volume, published in Roedelheim (a district in Frankfurt) in 1845, contains discourses on ethics by Rabbi Mordecai Hayyim Seligsberg. In the preface, the author thanks his sons, Isaac, Benjamin, and Solomon Seligsberg, residing in America, for their support in publishing the book. The text is presented in a single column with square Hebrew letters. The volume concludes with concise *likkutim* (concluding remarks) on various subjects and errata. This is the only edition of Part II. The book is an octavo measuring 188 x 115 mm and is bound in contemporary boards. It shows typical light age and damp staining, but is otherwise in very good condition.

This book, published in Boston, Massachusetts in 1848, compiles Talmudic maxims translated from Hebrew, along with other sayings gathered from various authors. The compiler is identified as D.S. D'Israeli. The book offers a collection of wisdom and teachings drawn from rabbinic literature and other sources.