Mavi Boncuk |
Gabbai, family of Hebrew printers. Isaac Ben Solomon (b. second half of 16th century) lived in Leghorn and was the author of the Mishnah commentary Kaf Naḥat (appended to Mishnah, ed. Venice, 1614). Early in the 17th century he worked as a typesetter for Bragadini[2] in Venice. His son Jedidiah acquired the Bragadini type and decorations and set up the first Hebrew press in Leghorn, which was active there from 1650 to 1660, issuing a number of important works. With part of the equipment and staff of this press, Jedidiah's son Abraham in 1657 established a printing house in Smyrna, which existed until 1675. Abraham himself moved to Constantinople in 1660, where he was a printer for a number of years. His corrector (proofreader) was Solomon Ben David Gabbai – probably not of the same family – author of the kabbalistic work Me'irat Einayim (between 1660 and 1665) and a theological work Ta'alumot Ḥokhmah (Bodleian Library, Ms. Opp. 602). SOURCE
Next to Italy in importance were Constantinople (1493) and Salonika (1513) where Hebrew printing was introduced by exiles from Spain and Portugal; the Soncinos began their activity in Salonika in 1527/28 and in Constantinople in 1530. Iberian refugees also brought printing to North Africa. Hebrew books were printed in Fez with Lisbon type, 1516–22.
Constantinople too experienced an almost complete break in Hebrew printing from 1585 to 1638. In the latter year Solomon Franco set up his press, which his son Abraham continued until 1683 and where several refugees from the Chmielnicki massacres were employed. Jonah b. Jacob of Zalocze in Galicia set up a press in 1710 and printed mostly in the Amsterdam style, but Italian influence was also present. When his press burned down in 1741, the Constantinople rabbi Abraham Rosanes helped him to reestablish himself, and his sons continued to print from 1743. Both Franco and Jonah modified the old decorations in the Oriental style, as can be seen by comparing the Temple as printer's mark used in Venice, Prague, and Lublin with that of Constantinople, e.g., Joshua Benveniste's Sedeh Yehoshu'a of 1749. In Salonika too, after a long interval, Hebrew printing was resumed in 1650 on a modest scale. A revival began in 1709 under Abraham b. David and Yomtov Canpillas, the latter printing alone from 1729 and with partners from 1732. They printed mainly rabbinic novellae, responsa, and homiletics. Salonika preserved in type, decorations, and even paper its own easily recognizable style. Jedidiah Gabbai's Leghorn press was transferred to Smyrna by his son Abraham in 1657. Jonah b. Jacob (see above) also printed there in 1729–41. In Chufut-Kale, Afda and Shabbetai Jeraka with other partners set up the first Karaite press in 1734 (until 1741), working with types similar to that of Constantinople.
SEE ALSO: "Jewish Journalism and printing houses in the Ottoman Empire and Modern Turkey", edited by Gad Nassi, Ed. The Isis Press, Istanbul, 2001 [in English]- Series: Analecta Isisiana Ottoman and Turkish Studies
- Hardcover: 167 pages
- Publisher: Gorgias Pr Llc (November 30, 2010)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1617199095
- ISBN-13: 978-1617199097
[1] The first mention of Jews in connection with printing is found in Avignon c. 1444 (before Gutenberg) when a Jew, Davin de Caderousse, studied the new craft. The first Hebrew books were printed at least within 35 years after the invention of printing – the first dated ones being Rashi's commentary on the Pentateuch and Jacob b. Asher's Arba'ah Turim of 1475 (see *Incunabula ). This new and wonderful invention was called the "crown of all science," and its practice, like that of writing of sacred books, melekhet shamayim ("a divine craft," see Er. 13a) or melekhet ha-kodesh ("a sacred craft," Ex. 36:4). It was regarded as a means to realize Isaiah's prediction (11:9) that "the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord." There were, on the other hand, interested parties such as the copy-ists, who feared for their livelihood and who opposed the innovation, as did those monk-copyists who described it as the "work of the devil." Printing raised halakhic problems as shown by contemporary responsa: the question arose whether the halakhah concerning the writing of sacred books and the care and respect due to them was applicable to printed books as well and whether, in particular, Sifrei Torah, tefillin, mezuzot, bills of divorce, etc., could be printed. Despite difficulties, the production of Hebrew books grew: David Kimḥi's Sefer ha-Shorashim saw three editions within a decade.
Printing had a revolutionary influence on the religious and cultural life of Jewish communities everywhere: on books and their distribution, on learning and education, on synagogal rites, etc. The order and division of the books of the *Bible , which today differ from both the talmudic and masoretic traditions, and the division into chapters in particular, are the result of printing. The printing of the Bible popularized it, while dictionaries and grammars, now easily obtainable, contributed greatly to the understanding of the Bible. The same is true for the Talmud, with its standard pagination originating in the first complete Bomberg edition (1520–23). The study of the Talmud became easier and far more widespread, and the printing alongside of the text, in addition to Rashi's commentary, of the *Tosafot of Touques gave talmudic learning a new direction which led to the development of the novellae literature and of pilpul. The widespread use of printed prayer books reduced the importance and relative freedom of the reader; minor rites were eliminated in favor of the major ones, which in turn became fixed and standardized by the printed text. Purely local variations of rite have survived in manuscripts only. Earlier (1477) the word defus (talmudic: frame, mold) was used as a noun for printing, alliterating to the Latin typus. To describe the activity, the same word as for writing (katav) or engraving (ḥakak) was chosen, from which was derived meḥokek for the printer; but also ha'atek (to copy) which led to the noun he'etek for the copy of a printed book. Occasionally one finds such strange circumscriptions as "writing with many pens" (cf. Yoma 38b) or "writing without a pen." By the 16th century the derivatives from defus in the verb-forms of hidpis and nidpas – and madpis for the printer – were in common use, though some of the early terminology such as mehokek survived in Germany and Eastern Europe for a considerable time. (For Hebrew printing in the 15th century.
SIGNATURE AND PAGINATION
The early book productions had no signature, a device which was introduced by Joshua *Soncino in 1483. Usually, the signature is found on the left side of the bottom of the page in Hebrew alphabetical numbers, but some Augsburg, Constantinople, and Salonika issues of the early 16th century have them on the top left or bottom right corner. Up to about 1515 only Hebrew letters were used, but Daniel *Bomberg introduced Arabic figures as well. In rare cases the alphabet took the place of numbers (Kol Bo, Rimini, 1525, Rome, 1545). Pagination was introduced later than the signature. No incunabulum appears to have had it. The first to have had numbered folios, though not very consistently so, is Maimonides' Mishneh Torah, printed in Constantinople in 1509. Soncino did not number his pages to the end. Of Bomberg's productions those prepared by Adelkind – with the exception of Bibles and prayer books – have numbered folios; from 1525 this is the case with all Bomberg's work, and most other Italian printers followed his example. The Hebrew number appears on the upper left of the first page in Bomberg's works; other printers added Arabic figures. One work printed in Sabbioneta and one in Cremona repeat the number on the upper right of the second page of the leaf. Pagination of pages is rather rare at first, exceptions being the works of Stephanus at Paris, Plan-tin at Antwerp, and Zanetti at Rome in the 16th century. The Cremona Zohar of 1559 has two columns to each page and numbers opposite every tenth line.
TITLE PAGES AND DECORATION
Title pages, too, make their first appearance in the 16th century. In the incunabula the text begins at first on the first page, but from 1483 the first page or folio is empty. The early title pages were very simple, with only a title, *colophon , place, and year. Whatever ornaments would appear on the first page of the text were then transferred to the title page. Such decorations – woodcuts of initials and border ornaments – were introduced by the Soncinos. Printers in Naples (Joseph b. Jacob *Gunzenhauser ), as well as in Spain and Portugal, also used framed initials. Bomberg, following the general trend in book production, discarded the border ornaments and introduced the title page portal.
1500–1550
The first half of the 16th century was in many ways the golden age of Hebrew printing, with Italy and the house of *Soncino (until 1526) in a leading position. (See Map: Hebrew Printing Locations). Gershon Soncino published mainly the Bible and its commentators, prayer books, and single Talmud tractates. His great competitor was Daniel Bomberg, the Christian printer from Antwerp, who from 1516 (or perhaps a few years earlier) to 1549 systematically issued the basic texts of Judaism in hitherto unequaled typographical perfection. With Bomberg Venice became the capital of Hebrew printing until well into the 18th century: in the above period the names of *Giustiniani and *Bragadini were outstanding. Elsewhere in Italy Samuel Latif printed in Mantua (1513–15). In 1518 the sons of Avigdor of Padua were active in Rome, where Samuel Ẓarefati printed in 1540–45 and Antonio Blado in 1545–46; another son of Avigdor used German square type in a siddur issued in Trino in 1525. More important were the productions of the Jewish silk-makers in Bologna (1537–40), mainly beautifully finished prayer books of the Italian rite of which many copies printed on parchment have survived.
Constantinople, Salonika, and Fez
Next to Italy in importance were Constantinople (1493) and Salonika (1513) where Hebrew printing was introduced by exiles from Spain and Portugal; the Soncinos began their activity in Salonika in 1527/28 and in Constantinople in 1530. Iberian refugees also brought printing to North Africa. Hebrew books were printed in Fez with Lisbon type, 1516–22.
Northern Europe
Hebrew printing in northern Europe began in Prague in 1512 with a group of printers who were later joined by Gershom b. Solomon Kohen, founder of a long and famous line of printers (the "Gersonides"; see *Kohen family ). He used German square and a new cursive rabbinic type and many ornaments: angels, birds, lions, municipal coats of arms, and outspread hands, the priestly symbol of the family. To this group also belonged Ḥayyim *Shaḥor , who left Prague in 1526 to print at Oels (1530), Augsburg (1533–44), Ichenhausen, and Heddernheim (1546). Apart from continuing in the Prague style of type and decoration, Shahor also used the smaller Italian type. In Poland, krakow and Lublin became important centers of Hebrew printing.
Hebrew Printing by and for Non-Jews
This was a special feature of the first half of the 16th century though it continued long afterward. The age was that of the Reformation and humanism, when enlightened Christian scholars became interested in the Hebrew Bible, its language, and grammar. This demand was filled by such men as Stephanus in Paris (1508–?), who used his own rabbinic and square types which bore a resemblance to the Spanish ones. Only after 1542 did he go over to the Italian type. In Basle Hebrew printing began in 1516 – and continued through the century; here the German square type, but somewhat slanting, was used. Psalms, Hebrew grammars, and some Christian liturgical pieces in Hebrew, Latin, and Greek were printed in Lyons from 1520 by Gryphius, who utilized the same type. German cities in which Hebrew printing took place were Tuebingen (1511), Augsburg (1514), Cologne (1518), Wittenberg (1521), Leipzig (1533), Solingen (1538), and Mainz (1542). A special position was occupied by the Hebrew press, set up in 1540 by the Christian Hebraist Paulus *Fagius in conjunction with Elijah *Levita at Isny, Wuerttemberg, and later at Konstanz on the German-Swiss border, where some books were printed in separate editions for Jews and Christians (e.g., Levita's Tishbi of 1541–42). They used the German type for their meticulous productions.
1550–1627
The single most influential event in the history of Hebrew printing in this period was the papal prohibition and subsequent burning of the Talmud in 1553. The virtual monopoly of Venice on Talmud printing came to an end, resulting in complete or partial Talmud editions in Lublin (1559), Salonika (1563), and Basle (1578). In krakow and Constantinople, too, single tractates were printed at this time. In Italy itself two different periods are distinguishable:
(I) the decentralization of Hebrew printing over many small presses in different places during 1550–68;
(II) the reemergence of Venice as the center of Hebrew printing and the predominance of certain presses in the town from 1569 onward.
Ferrara, Sabbioneta, Mantua, Cremona, and Riva di Trento
In 1551 Samuel Ẓarefati, who had worked as a Hebrew printer in Rome, set up a press at Ferrara, which was taken over two years later by the Marrano Abraham *Usque . Simultaneously, Tobias *Foa established a Hebrew press at Sabbioneta, near Mantua, with Joseph Shalit of Padua, Jacob b. Naphtali, and later Cornelio *Adelkind (1553–55) as printers. The last-mentioned printed the last Talmud tractate (Kiddushin) before the prohibition, as well as an exemplary edition of Alfasi, the study of which was now substituted for that of the Talmud. In Sabbioneta, too, Salonika's influence was paramount, and the two types were so similar as to lead to confusion. The very small type used found its way to Mantua and later to Venice (De Gara, 1572; Bragadini, 1616). Sabbioneta productions are more lavishly decorated than those of Ferrara. Joseph Shalit and Jacob b. Naphtali continued printing at Mantua from 1556 at Rufinelli's, 1557–63. After a rather quiescent period (1563–90), of which only Azariah dei Rossi's Me'or Einayim of 1574 was noteworthy, more active printing was resumed at the press of Tomaso Ruffinelli. A new one was set up in 1612 by Eliezer d'Italia where besides smaller liturgical items such larger works as Abraham Portaleone's Shiltei ha-Gibborim appeared. In 1622 the Perugia family took over this press which remained active for another 50 years. Mantua productions show little originality, in their decorations. Jacob ha-Kohen first introduced a title page with a decorative border and the outspread hands of the priesthood. When he entered into partnership with Meir Sofer, the typical Mantua title portal with winding pillars made its appearance. They also used the various vignettes of Bragadini and De Farri and those of Sabbioneta. The Mantua illustrated Haggadot with the big German type have become famous. In Cremona Vincenzo Conti printed, between 1556 and 1566, some 40 books, of which the most important was the Zohar of 1559. His assistants were Samuel Boehm, Zanvil Pescarol and Vittorio Eliano. From 1558 works display the cum licencia of the Inquisition. Conti extended his activities to Sabbioneta, where Israel Zifroni printed several books for him in 1567. The last book printed in Cremona was Yosef Lekaḥ by Eliezer Ashkenazi, issued by Solomon Bueno at Draconi's in 1576. Riva di Trento received its Hebrew press in 1558 when the physician Jacob Marcaria obtained a license from Cardinal Madruzzi. With the help of R. Joseph *Ottolenghi he first issued a reasonably priced edition of Alfasi for Ottolenghi's yeshivah students. This was followed by some philosophical and rabbinic works. The last of these, Me'ir Iyyov by Meir Arama, of 1562, had to be completed by Cavalli in Venice in 1566. Marcaria used mainly square types, among them a small one. His decorations are similar to those of Mantua in their title portals and decorated initials. Books of 1562 have their own vignette, later copied in krakow.
Venice
When in 1563 the printing of Hebrew books in Venice was once more permitted, most of the printers mentioned before moved or moved back there and found employment with the houses of Gryphio (1564–67), Cavalli (1565–67), and Zanetti (1565–67), each using his own printer's mark. At that time mostly Turim with Caro's commentary and his Shulḥan Arukh came off thepresses, taking the place of the prohibited Talmud. Eventually Di Gara and Bragadini emerged as the leading presses. Di Gara, whom some of the best printers had joined, aspired to continue the Bomberg tradition. He succeeded as far as externals were concerned until 1585, when new title pages, borders, and decorated letters gave the productions a different character. In the choice of books Di Gara followed in the footsteps of Bomberg. Di Gara also printed many homiletical works, mostly by Oriental authors, such as Alshekh, Alkabez, and Almosnino. He was assisted in this by Isaac Gershon of Safed, as corrector. Bragadini resumed printing immediately after the repeal of the prohibition, with Meir Parenzo and, after the latter's death, his brother Asher as his managing printers. They published the first (1565) and two further editions of Caro's Shulhan Arukh and a new edition of Maimonides' Mishneh Torah with Caro's commentary Kesef Mishneh (1574–75). From 1579 to 1600 Bragadini and Di Gara worked together. After a period of recession, there was a revival under Giovanni Cajon's management (c. 1615) which produced a new Bible (1617/18) under Leone *Modena 's supervision. From 1625, under Caleoni, several maḥzor editions and other liturgical items were printed, but with the rise of the Amsterdam and German presses, Bragadini's lost its impetus. A short-lived revival took place in 1710–15 as shown by the two-volume folio German maḥzor, printed with new, large types. Another press active at Venice at the time was that of Zanetti, with Isaac *Gershon as supervisor (1593–1608). Outside Venice, apart from Mantua, there was Padua, where Samuel Boehm printed at Lorenzo Pasquato in 1562–67, and Crivellari's press with two works, 1622–23. Some Hebrew and Judeo-German books were issued at Verona by Francesco della Donne (1594–95).
krakow and Lublin
Italian influence made itself felt in krakow when Isaac b. Aaron *Prostitz with the aid of Samuel Boehm set up his press in 1569. They had brought type and decorations with them from Italy and imitated the ornaments of most Italian presses. They printed, largely for local needs, the works of German and Polish authors as well as ethical and liturgical items in Hebrew and Yiddish. From 1595 onward larger works were published. With Isaac b. Aaron's return to Prossnitz ( *Prostejov ) some Hebrew printing, such as an Ein Ya'akov, took place there (1603–05). In Lublin, where Kalonymus Jaffe was active from 1562, the influence of both Prague and Venice were at work. Jaffe printed, besides local authors, the Talmud and Zohar as well as some philosophical (or anti-philosophical) works. In Bistrowicz he prepared in 1592 a Haggadah with Abrabanel's commentary. His printer's mark was the Temple, which was also used in Prague and by Giustiniani.
Prague, Basle, and Hanau
The Kohen family in Prague continued to be active from 1562; in 1605 another printing family, the *Baks , established themselves. They both continued the Prague tradition, Italian influence making itself felt only occasionally. The Prague productions were mainly in the liturgical and ethical field, both in Hebrew and Judeo-German. Israel Zifroni guided the Hebrew press of Frobenius in Basle, which hitherto had worked mainly for the Christian market, in a different direction by printing several rabbinic works, including an edition – censored – of the Talmud (1578–88) and without the "objectionable" trac-tate Avodah Zarah, which was, however, supplemented in krakow (1580). Zifroni-Froben printed a couple of works in Freiburg-im-Breisgau as well (1583–84). The original Basle type had to give way to the Italian one. Another Basle Hebrew press at the time was that of Konrad Waldkirch who, with the assistance of printers from Poland, issued among others a Bible (1618–19) and Joseph Solomon Delmedigo's Ta'alumot Ḥokhmah (1629–31). About this time Hebrew printing took place in Hanau (Hesse), where from 1610 to 1630 several important kabbalistic and Judeo-German works were issued. Both sides of their title pages showed the figures of Moses and Aaron – which set a fashion among later printers – and above was a representation of the Akedah.
Turkey, Egypt, and Palestine
In Constantinople and Salonika in the second half of the 16th century, the *Jabez brothers took the place of the older printers. After a short stay in Adrianople, they arrived in the two cities in 1559 and produced up to 1586 a series of rabbinic, philosophical, anti-Christian, and Karaite works, among them two Talmud editions based on Bomberg's edition with elements from Giustiniani (Salonika, 1563–65; Constantinople, 1580–82). The printers used the Italian type but not the decorations, their only ornament being the trefoil. Between 1578 and 1600 Joseph Nasi's widow Doña Reyna had Hebrew presses at her palace of Belvedere and in other places near Constantinople. Her husband had been a patron of Hebrew printing. About 1590 members of the Italian Bat-Sheva family settled in Salonika and set up a press, using Italian type and decorations. In Cairo a fourth-generation Soncino printed two Hebrew books in 1557 and 1562. The aforementioned Eliezer b. Isaac printed several works in Safed during 1577–87, and the same type was used a generation later to print Josiah Pinto's Kesef Niḥhar in Damascus (1605).
Alvise Bragadin (also Bragadini) was born in the early 1500s and settled in his hometown of Venice, where he became a renowned Christian printer of Hebrew books. He founded the firm Stamparia Bragadina which enjoyed wild success during his lifetime and after his death under the ownership of ten of his descendants until the mid-1700s, when the press began to decline. It is uncertain when Bragadin first began printing Hebrew books. Maimonides’ “Mishnah Torah,” printed in 1550, is widely considered his first Hebrew work.
The Bragadin family was one of the oldest and most powerful in Venice, yet despite their influence their press was also affected by the Counterreformation and the Roman Inquisition. A prohibition on the printing of Hebrew books was imposed in Venice from 1554 to 1563 and not a single Hebrew book was published at the Bragadin press during this time. Alvise Bragadin resumed printing books after the ban was lifted until his death in 1575. He was succeeded by his son Giovanni Bragadin. The press is said to have enjoyed a monopoly on Hebrew printing in Venice and its books found their way into the hands of customers around the world in Europe, North Africa and the Fertile Crescent. This monopoly ended with the establishment of the Stamparia Vendramina press by Giovanni Vendramin in 1630.
Two distinct title page designs appear in the Brisman collection. The first is a plain frame around the edge of the page as pictured in “Maftehot Ha-Zohar,” a Kabbalistic work containing indexes to the Zohar, the set of books on which Kabbalah is based. The second design is represented by “Sefer Kavanat Shelomoh,” also a Kabbalistic work which features an arch flanked by the figures of Moses and Aaron. Above the arch, two angels grasp the Ten Commandments. The firm’s name appears in the Latin alphabet towards the bottom of both title pages.
bibliography:
D.W. Amram, Makers of Hebrew Books in Italy (1909), 252–76, 363–75; C. Roth, Jews in Venice (1930), 256ff.; J. Bloch, Venetian Printers of Hebrew Books (1932), 17ff. and passim; H.B. Friedberg, Toledot ha-Defus ha-Ivri be-Italyah (1934), 53–55.
Amram, David Werner. The Makers of Hebrew Books in Italy: Being Chapters in the History of the Hebrew Printing. Philadelphia: J.H. Greenstone, 1909.
Bloch, Joshua. "Venetian Printers of Hebrew Books." In Hebrew Printing and Bibliography, 63-88. New York: New York Public Library and Ktav Publishing House, 1976.
THE 17TH AND 18TH CENTURIES
Amsterdam
Hebrew printing followed the wanderings of the Jews. (See Map: Hebrew Printing Locations). Fugitives from the Inquisition established the new Portuguese community in Amsterdam at the turn of the 16th century. Ignorant of Hebrew, they recited their prayers in Spanish, and prayer books in that language were printed in Amsterdam by 1604. When Hebrew became more familiar, Venice supplied prayer books in Hebrew, with or without translation. In 1626 *Manasseh Ben Israel set up the first Hebrew press in Amsterdam – a turning point in the history of Hebrew printing. He discarded Italian type, making himself independent of Venice, and had his own type cast which was destined to become dominant all over Europe, including Venice. Amsterdam productions were much sought after as those of Venice had been earlier and they found imitators among Hebrew printers elsewhere. Amsterdam was at the time a great center of general printing, and in format, composition, and decoration Manasseh followed the Dutch style; thus he added the author's portrait to some works. Manasseh's press changed owners several times, though he remained connected with it. Simultaneous with this press another was set up by Daniel de *Fonseca but only two works were issued: Meir Aldabi's Shevilei Emunah and Abraham de Fonseca's Einei Avraham (1627). Manasseh found successors among his fellow Sephardim, among them Joseph *Athias (1658–98) and his son (d. 1709). In externals such as vignettes and diagrams they adopted in some way the style of the famous Dutch printer Elsevier. Athias first used Manasseh's title pages, but later had one designed for himself depicting Joseph (his namesake) meeting his father Jacob. This was later adopted by Jablonski in Berlin. He also added a neatly executed copperplate engraving to some of his productions, which found a number of imitators; one of them (Shenei Luhot ha-Berit, 1698) was by the proselyte Abraham b. Jacob, who illustrated the famous Amsterdam Haggadah of 1695, produced by the German-Jewish printer Kosmann Emmerich. Another member of the Athias family, Abraham b. Raphael Hezekiah, printed some handsomely produced books during 1728–40. To the same Sephardi group belongs David de *Castro Tartas , who learned the craft at Manasseh's press and often used Manasseh's borders. His frontispieces show scenes from the life of David. Of particular interest are his small-format liturgical items of 1666, dated year one of the new Shabbatean era and with an engraving of Shabbetai Ẓevi as king-messiah. Smaller entrepreneurs were Moses b. Abraham Mendes *Coutinho , for whom Solomon *Proops worked for some time; Isaac de Cordova (1668–1710), later in Hamburg; Moses b. Isaac Dias (1706–13); Isaac Templo (1714–34), who printed Nehemiah Ḥayon's Ha-Ẓad Ẓevi (1744) but otherwise mainly liturgical items of the Sephardi rite; and Nethanel Foà (1700–15) who displayed as printer's mark the coat of arms of this well-known family. In addition to these printers, who produced mainly for their own community, there were those who endeavored to meet the needs of the German community established in Amsterdam in the course of the 17th century. There was Manuel (Immanuel) Benveniste, whose productions lack the finish of those of Manasseh, though his title page with the initials CVS has been imitated by German, Italian, and even Salonika printers. Benveniste was succeeded by his former employee *Uri Phoebus b. Aaron ha-Levi (1658–89), who worked even more for the German and also for the newly established Polish communities. From Manasseh he borrowed the title border and the vignettes. The frontispieces in his Bibles and prayer books have engravings with motifs borrowed from Prague, Augsburg, and Hanau, showing Moses and Aaron on each side. This engraving has been much copied by German presses. In 1612 he founded a Hebrew press at Zolkiew, thus bringing the Amsterdam type to Poland. Less important Ashkenazi printers in Amsterdam were Samuel b. Moses ha-Levi, who was active from 1650 to 1655, having for assistants Reuben b. Eliakim and Judah b. Mordecai; and Asher Anshel Shohet, who had worked with Uri Phoebus from 1663 to 1665 and printed some liturgical and popular items. The two Ashkenazi dayyanim Joseph Dayyan and Moses Frankfurter printed some Talmud tractates the latter in particular a large, four-volume Bible, Kehillat Moshe (1724–27). Of greater importance was the physician Naphtali Herz of Emden (1721–42, to 1768 with his son-in-law) who printed some fine books. Some Christians too engaged in the Hebrew printing in Amsterdam – employing Polish refugees – such as Kaspar Steen. Albertus Magnus brought out a handsome Seder Berakhot with Spanish translation in 1687; G. Surenhuys printed a famous and impressive edition of the Mishnah with Latin translation and notes (1698–1703). In the 18th century the dominant figure in Amsterdam Hebrew printing became Samuel Proops (1702–34). He printed mainly siddurim and mahzorim of the various rites. From 1715 a list of his publications is advertised at the end of every copy. He was also the first to bring out a sales catalog of Hebrew books (Appiryon Shelomo, 1730). The press remained in the family until 1849 and was as important to Amsterdam as Bragadini was to Venice.
Germany
The unsettled conditions in Central and Eastern Europe – wars, frequent expulsions, sack, and fire, and, above all, the Chmielnicki pogroms in Poland with thousands of refugees fleeing westward and leaving behind everything including their books and libraries – had a profound influence on Hebrew book production. There was in particular an urgent need for Talmud copies and rabbinic literature in a period of unabated, passionate interest in these disciplines. This need was met by Amsterdam and the many Hebrew presses springing up in Germany. During the 18th century the Talmud was printed ten times, each edition in several thousand copies. Catastrophic events produced a desire among the less learned and the womenfolk for works of solace and edification, which accounts for the great increase in the publication of Yiddish literature. Printing became a profitable business besides being a pious enterprise, and large sums were being invested, loaned, or donated for these diverse reasons. In Central and Eastern Europe, Jews found it difficult to obtain the necessary printing licenses from feudal lords, and therefore had to associate with Christians as their nominal printers. On the other hand, economic considerations such as the needs of local papermills and fiscal expectations led many small princes or authorities to grant licenses, at the same time protecting the new industry and their country's balance of payments by prohibiting the importation of Hebrew books. Large sums were involved: in about 1780 it was calculated that the Jews of Vienna spent 290,000 florins annually on books. Typographically the new Hebrew printers in Germany were at first dependent on Prague whence most of the personnel came. Gradually the influence of Amsterdam made itself felt, even in Prague itself. The German square type was increasingly discarded. The Hebrew presses of Germany consisted of two groups: those with the Prague connection, such as Sulzbach, Wilhermsdorf, and Fuerth; and those originating with the Ashkenazi printers of Amsterdam, such as Dyhernfurth, Dessau, Halle. Apart from Christian presses which issued Hebrew books sporadically only, and small, ephemeral Jewish printers, Germany produced a considerable number of important Hebrew presses. One of the most prominent Jewish agglomerations was the triple community of Altona, Hamburg, and Wands-beck (AHW), which was reflected in printing as well. S. Poppert was active in Hamburg and Altona (1715–36); Ephraim Heckscher and his partner Aaron b. Elijah Kohen (1732–75); Abraham b. Israel of Halle, son of the printer at Offenbach, Homburg and Neuwied (1743–47). In 1745 Jacob *Emden , the great rabbinic scholar and polemicist, set up his own press which printed mainly his own works, such as the three-volume siddur Ammudei Shamayim (1745–48) and his polemics against Jonathan *Eybeschuetz .
THE TWO FRANKFURTS, BERLIN, ETC
In the ancient and influential community of Frankfurt on the Main no Jew could obtain a printing license from the guild-dominated city authorities, but Christians owned Hebrew presses: Johannes West (1677–1707), Blasius Ilsner (1682–?), the Andreas (1707–?), Nikolas Weinmann, and Anton Heinscheit. Of special importance was Johann Koelner (1708–28) from whose printing office came a five-volume Arba'ah Turim with J. Sirkes' commentary (1712–16) and an excellent edition of the Talmud (1720–23) which became the basis for later editions. Aryeh Loeb, son of the Frankfurt rabbi Joseph Samuel of krakow, and later rabbi in Mattersdorf, was responsible for this enterprise. Aryeh Loeb had also prepared the second Amsterdam Talmud of 1714–17, the unacknowledged master copy for the later Berlin-Frankfurt on the Oder edition. The Frankfurt on the Oder Christian presses had issued Hebrew books before the end of the 16th century, but widespread printing began in 1695 with J.C. Beckmann and Michael Gottschalk, whose successors, F. Grillo, his widow, his daughter, and J.T. Elsner continued Hebrew printing until 1818. Gottschalk prepared the first Talmud edition in Germany (1697–99) which Behrend *Lehmann of Halberstadt financed, with 50,000 taler. A second edition, which Lehmann first wanted to divert to the other Frankfurt, was eventually printed (1715–22) in both Frankfurt on the Oder and Berlin. Midrashim (Rabba, Tanḥuma Yalkut) were also issued there. Gottschalk employed setters from Prague and Venice; his type and vignettes were of Amsterdam origin. In Berlin, the court preacher D.E. Jablonski established a Hebrew press with Judah Loeb Neumark as manager. From 1708 to 1717 Baruch Buchbinder of Radow printed, among others, the Ein Ya'akov (1709) and several works of the Shabbatean writer Nehemiah Ḥayon Neumark's son Nathan had his own press from 1719 to 1727 on which he printed some Talmud tractates from 1723. His brother-in-law Aaron b. Moses Rofe was active for three decades from 1733. He printed the Talmud (1734–39) with the backing of Jablonski, whose type was used, and Grillo of Frankfurt on the Oder; it was thus an undertaking of both cities. Aaron's press continued under his grandson Moses and his great-grandson Mordecai Landsberg. There was also Hebrew printing in Dessau (1694– ), Jessnitz (1718– ), and Koethen (1717– ) in the duchy of Anhalt. In Halle, the proselyte Moses b. Abraham of Nikolsburg (Mikulov) and Prague was active from 1709 to 1714, after having worked with Hebrew printers in Amsterdam, Dessau, Berlin, and Frankfurt on the Oder. In Dyhernfurth (Silesia), Shabbetai Bass of Prague, who had learned the trade with Uri Phoebus at Amsterdam, founded a press in 1689; his son Joseph took over in 1712 (till 1739). While his newly cast type and decorations were mostly of Amsterdam origin, Bass's employees came from Poland, among them Ẓevi Hirsch b. Ḥayyim. Neuwied (Rhineland) had Hebrew presses (Grat and J.B. Haupt), run by Israel b. Moses. Another printer there was Benjamin Solomon Kroneburg.
SOUTHERN GERMANY
In southern Germany and the environs of Frankfurt in particular, Hebrew printing had already taken place early in the 17th century in Hanau and was resumed from 1709, partly by Christian printers such as H.J. Bashuysen and J.C. Beausang. Among Jewish printers there was Seligman Reis (1710–30), who also had been active in Frankfurt on the Main, Offenbach, and Homburg V.d.H. (1711–12). Aaron Dessau and partners set up a press in Homburg in 1736 (to 1757). In Offenbach, Seligmann Reis and his son Herz printed from 1714 to 1721. Bonaventura de Nannoy worked with the Jewish printer Israel b. Moses, who was also active in Neuwied and Homburg. In 1724 Israel acquired the press and worked it until 1733 and on his return from Neuwied in 1737 finished a Mishnah edition begun there in 1736.
SULZBACH, WILHERMSDORF, AND FUERTH
In Sulzbach (Bavaria) an interesting and successful experiment in Christian and Jewish cooperation in the production of Hebrew books began in 1667, when Abraham Lichtenthaler, a Lutheran, set up a Hebrew press. He was assisted by Isaac b. Judah Loeb Yuedels, a Prague-trained printer, who had a license but no capital, and who was soon after in Wilhermsdorf. The patron of the project was Duke Christian August, an enthusiast of theosophy. Most early Sulzbach title pages have no decorations; only later did there appear simple border lines or illustrations engraved or on woodblocks. Some show a serpent winding round a tree (the Tree of Knowledge); others show crabs and fishes, or Moses and David on the right and Aaron and Solomon on the left. Some of these title pages were used in Fuerth and Dyhernfurth as well. The type was at first that of Prague, but for certain works the type of Amsterdam was used. Moses Bloch was succeeded by his widow and sons (1694–99) who printed some tractates as part of a plan to print the entire Talmud. Then Bloch's son-in-law Aaron Frankl took over, his first production being a two-volume folio maḥzor, attractively printed with decorated initials and a convenient arrangement of the prayers. Aaron was followed by his son Meshullam Zalman (1721–64), who printed a Talmud edition, 1755–63. His competitor, Proops of Amsterdam, obtained from the rabbinical assembly at the Four Council meeting at Staro-Konstantinov (1755) an injunction, which was countermanded by the decision of a ten-member rabbinical court presided over by the rabbi of Fuerth, David Stanss. A similar controversy arose in the next century over the Talmud editions of Vilna and Slavuta. Meshullam Zalman's sons and grandsons continued the business into the middle of the 19th century, when it was carried on under the name of S. Arnstein and Sons (1818–51); their publisher's catalogs appeared from 1830. The firm founded by Moses Bloch had been active for 160 years, issuing about 600 works, among them many cheaply printed but popular liturgical items. Another center of Hebrew printing in Bavaria was Wilhermsdorf, where Isaac b. Judah Loeb Yuedels (see before under Sulzbach) set up a press in 1669 with staff recruited from Prague, among them his daughters as setters and a son-in-law as proofreader. Another Prague printer, Israel Meir, set up a press in 1712 but sold it the same year to Hirsch b. Ḥayyim of Fuerth, whose son worked later in Fuerth, printing until 1739. Hirsch cultivated book decorations: his printer's mark was the tree with the serpent and a crab and a lion on each side; the title page showed Moses and Aaron and angels hovering above them and the last page a flower basket as vignette. Nearby Fuerth, a center of talmudic learning, had its first Hebrew presses by 1691. One was established by Solomon Shne'ur and his son Joseph with the help of the krakow printer Moses Menahem Katz, and later continued under another son (Abraham) and a son-in-law Isaac Bing, and their sons or successors to 1730. This press printed some important rabbinic and Yiddish works. The other enterprise was that of Hirsch Frankfurter (till 1701), who had the backing of his brother-in-law, the Court Jew Mordecai Model of Ansbach; the latter had a license to print the Talmud. Another press was founded in Fuerth in 1737 by Ḥayyim b. Ẓevi Hirsch, son of the Dyhernfurth printer (see above), and it continued under him and his widow until 1774.
Italy, Prague, and Poland
In Venice, bereft of its former glory, Bragadini was still dominant at this period with Vendramini (de Zara) as his main competitor (from 1631) until they joined forces. Their activities were soon limited to siddurim and similar items. In Mantua, too, Hebrew printing continued, first under J.S. Perugia and his descendants, and from 1724 under the physician Raphael Ḥayyim d'Italia and his successor Eliezer Solomon d'Italia. From 1718 to 1723 Isaac Jare b. David and Jacob Ḥaver-Tov also printed in Mantua. A new center was to arise in Leghorn, where Abraham Ḥaver-Tov, one of Bragadini's best proofreaders, printed some important works in partnership with Jedidiah Gabbai. They used as printer's mark the three crowns – borrowed from Bragadini – with the addition of the coat of arms of the Medicis. Some Hebrew printing took place at Rossi's press in Verona during 1645–52, with the Amsterdam influence predominating. Such was the case in Venice from 1700 and, in particular, in Leghorn, where Israel da Paz, who had worked with Isaac Templo at Amsterdam, was active from 1740. In Prague Hebrew printing resumed, after an interval of two decades, at Jacob Bak's press. During the 17th century Prague preserved its own style, but in the 18th century the old German square type disappeared from the superscriptions and much was borrowed from Amsterdam. In 1746 the archbishop's press issued the Gospels in Hebrew, Yiddish, German, and Latin for missionary purposes. In krakow Menahem N. Meisels established his press in 1631 and returned to the Prague style which replaced the Italian introduced by Isaac b. Aaron of Prossnitz. Meisel's manager was Judah Kohen of Prague, and there is a great similarity between their productions and those of Prague. Lublin too, where Hebrew printing took place with interruptions until 1683, remained under the Prague influence. Only when Uri Phoebus went to Zolkiew in 1692 did the Amsterdam style find a home in Poland.
Turkey
Constantinople too experienced an almost complete break in Hebrew printing from 1585 to 1638. In the latter year Solomon Franco set up his press, which his son Abraham continued until 1683 and where several refugees from the Chmielnicki massacres were employed. Jonah b. Jacob of Zalocze in Galicia set up a press in 1710 and printed mostly in the Amsterdam style, but Italian influence was also present. When his press burned down in 1741, the Constantinople rabbi Abraham Rosanes helped him to reestablish himself, and his sons continued to print from 1743. Both Franco and Jonah modified the old decorations in the Oriental style, as can be seen by comparing the Temple as printer's mark used in Venice, Prague, and Lublin with that of Constantinople, e.g., Joshua Benveniste's Sedeh Yehoshu'a of 1749. In Salonika too, after a long interval, Hebrew printing was resumed in 1650 on a modest scale. A revival began in 1709 under Abraham b. David and Yomtov Canpillas, the latter printing alone from 1729 and with partners from 1732. They printed mainly rabbinic novellae, responsa, and homiletics. Salonika preserved in type, decorations, and even paper its own easily recognizable style. Jedidiah Gabbai's Leghorn press was transferred to Smyrna by his son Abraham in 1657. Jonah b. Jacob (see above) also printed there in 1729–41. In Chufut-Kale, Afda and Shabbetai Jeraka with other partners set up the first Karaite press in 1734 (until 1741), working with types similar to that of Constantinople.
MODERN PERIOD
Central and Eastern Europe: 1760–1900
From the middle of the 18th century the center of Hebrew printing shifted more and more to Central and Eastern Europe. (See Map: Hebrew Printing Locations). States, large and small, in these regions wanted to prevent the importation of Hebrew books and the resulting drain on their capital resources. In addition, the increasing severity of the church-state censorship – severer than it ever was in other parts of Europe, in a region that had not known such censorship before – made it desirable to them to have Hebrew presses under their immediate supervision. For both these reasons the setting up of local Hebrew presses was encouraged. A more positive cause of the rise of these presses was the efflorescence of Talmud study in the growing number of yeshivot in Lithuania and Poland as well as of Ḥasidism and its literature, creating an ever larger demand for Hebrew books. The beginnings of Haskalah should also be mentioned in this context. This shift to Eastern Europe admittedly meant a lowering of the standards of printing and book production.
Austria
The Hapsburg Empire occupied a middle position between East and West, and its capital, Vienna, a leading position in Hebrew printing in this period. Presses established in the last decade of the 18th century by the court printers Joseph Hrazchansky and Anton Schmidt succeeded the great Hebrew printing houses of Venice and Amsterdam. By 1850 they had issued five editions of the Talmud. Schmidt, who acquired a great part of the Bomberg and Proops presses, printed most of the classical texts, including Bibles and prayer books of all the rites. Later in the century and well into the 20th century Joseph Schlesinger was the leading publisher-printer of such liturgical items with translations into the main European languages. In what became Czechoslovakia and what were, up to 1914, provinces of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy, the old center in Prague, the capital of Bohemia, never regained its former prominence. An attempt at revival by the Bak press from 1762 was stifled by the severity of the censorship. A certain revival took place under Moses *Landau (1820–50), who produced two Talmud editions and a good deal of Enlightenment literature emanating from the Mendelssohn school. In Bruenn (Brno), capital of Moravia, a Hebrew press had been founded in 1754 on the initiative of the Moravian chamber by Joseph Neumann which until 1802 produced mainly liturgical items, works of edification in Yiddish for the local market and those of local authors. Another Bruenn Hebrew printer at the time was Bezalel (Gottlieb) *Jeiteles . In Press-burg (Bratislava), capital of Slovakia, where some Hebrew printing had taken place in 1789–90, Schmidt of Vienna set up a press in 1838 from which important items were issued. Joseph Schlesinger, too, printed there in the 1860s. In the Austrian-dominated parts of Poland (Galicia), krakow retained its importance, with Naphtali Herz Shapiro and his sons active in 1802–22; Karl Budweiser (1863–74), who is found later in Lemberg (Lvov); and, in particular Joseph Fischer (1878–1914). The several small presses of Zolkiew were forced to transfer to Lvov in 1782, which led to the rise of that city as a center of Hebrew printing in the next century, with the presses of Mann (Grossmann-) Rosanes, Letteris, and, above all, Madfes, and some as yet unsurpassed editions of the Shulḥan Arukh were produced there. In Zolkiew itself a new press was founded in 1791 by a certain Meyerhofer, where works of the local rabbi Z.H. Chajes appeared in 1840–50. In Czernowitz Hebrew printing took place from 1819; in 1835 a Talmud edition was issued. In the Romanian capital of Bucharest the Sifra with the commentary by M.L. Malbim, then rabbi at Bucharest, came out in a fine edition.
Poland and Russia
In Russia proper the first Hebrew book is said to have been printed in 1760 in Oleksinets (Y.L. Heller's Berit Melah), where printing continued until 1770. The press of Slavuta (Ukraine), founded in 1792, issued three Talmud editions between 1800 and 1820; and one each (1816–28) in Kopys (Belorussia, founded 1807) and Grodno-Vilna (1835–54). The Shapira family of Slavuta continued in Zhitomir, printing fine editions of both Talmuds and the Zohar. Toward the middle of the 19th century Vilna became a great printing center – the Talmud editions of *Romm , who also issued other standard rabbinic texts, being recognized universally as the best editions. They continued to be reproduced to modern times. Romm's competitors in this field were printers like Samuel *Orgelbrand and Rosenkranz-Schriftsetzer in Warsaw, where the first Hebrew book was issued in 1796, and which eventually became an important center of Hebrew printing. See following table for a list of places in Poland and Russia where Hebrew printing took place in this period:
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