Commentary on the Pentateuch, Nissim ben Reuben Gerondi, [15th century]

Nissim ben Reuben Gerondi (1310–?1375), known from the acronym of Rabbenu Nissim as the Ran, was one of the most important Spanish talmudists. Gerondi’s family originated in Cordova and settled first in Gerona, where he is thought to have been born, and then in Barcelona, which became his permanent place of residence. Few biographical details of him are known. He never held any official rabbinical post, though he fulfilled all the functions of a rabbi and dayyan in his community and seems to have been the head of the Barcelona yeshivah. Among his chief pupils were Isaac ben Sheshet Perfet—who frequently quotes him—Hasdai Crescas, Joseph Habiba, and Abraham Tamakh. Furthermore, many takkanot enacted in Spain originated with him, and his reputation as an authoritative posek was such that he received queries from as far as Erez Israel and Syria. He is also known to have served as a physician in the royal palace.

Discernible in Gerondi’s commentary is his strong desire to prove the superiority of prophecy and the Bible over philosophy, and thereby to strengthen the people's faith and help them endure difficult periods of persecution and polemics. The present manuscript contains Gerondi’s commentary on Genesis until parashat Hayyei Sarah (Genesis 23).

Sotheby’s is grateful to Menahem Schmelzer z”l and Benjamin Richler for cataloguing this manuscript.

Provenance

Solomon Shneur (owner’s inscription on front flyleaf and fol. 1r) — Solomon Dubno (owner’s inscription on fol. 1r) — Yuzpa Cohen (owner’s inscription on fol. 1r) — Saadia ha-Levy (owner’s inscription on fol. 10r with purchase note: bought for 20 levanim) — Moses Sheni[ur?] (owner’s inscription on fol. 87r) — Solomon Halberstam (shelf no. 173)

Physical Description

87 leaves of paper (one blank), 11 1/8 x 8 3/8 inches; 283 x 214 mm, collation: 1-6¹²,7¹⁰,8⁵, traces of ruling in outer margin, 23 lines, written in black ink in Sefardi semi-cursive script, some marginal notes, catchwords, foliation in Hebrew, beginning with fol. 2, modern foliation in pencil; some marginal dampstaining,  bottom margin of fol. 1 trimmed and margins reinforced, fore-edge of fol. 2 reinforced; lower margins of fols. 83-87 reinforced. Library buckram.

Literature

Hirschfeld (ms. no. 20); published by Leon Feldman, R. Nissim b.Reuben Gerondi (Ran): Commentary on the Bible, 1968, using this manuscript, among others. Feldman believes (p. 91) that this manuscript is an autograph of the author, but this is not likely.