MAHZOR (FESTIVAL PRAYER BOOK) ACCORDING TO THE POLISH RITE, VOLUME 2, WECKELSDORF: SONS OF JUDAH BAK, 1680

An extremely rare copy of one volume from the only Hebrew title printed in Weckelsdorf.

The Baks were a major printing family active first in Italy and later in Prague. Jacob (1630-1688) and Joseph (d. 1696) inherited the business from their father Judah (d. 1671), publishing under the name “Sons of Judah Bak.” The present lot is volume two (Parashat shekalim through Shavuot) of a two-volume Polish-rite mahzor, including the special prayers, liturgical poems, and public synagogue readings for holidays and special Sabbaths, with a commentary compiled by Rabbi Moses ben Abraham Schedel of Prague (originally printed in 1585-1586 and later reprinted in 1606). For unknown reasons (perhaps due to plague), the Bak press temporarily ceased operations in Prague and relocated about 180 km northeast to Weckelsdorf (present-day Teplice nad Metují, Czech Republic), where it produced the present mahzor, the only Hebrew title printed in that town.