General

Title

New York, JTS, Ms. 436

Manuscript name

Great Tree

Summary

This Great Tree rotulus was copied by David Montpellier in London in 1663. The manuscript features a dating verse from the Torah portion Ekev, which Montpellier used as a double entendre to refer to both the tablets of Moses and the kabbalistic "luhot". The top half of the rotulus presents the Zacuto-Zemah Z module, concluding with an inscription that identifies the ground of Azilut as the footstool of the twelve parzufim. This witness is exceptionally rich in content, continuing with a visualization of the Trees of the Worlds (W) that extends through the end of Assiah. Its lower section is uniquely detailed, featuring a tower representing the seven levels of hell to the right of the central tree of Assiah and a demonic tree to its left. The seven holy palaces, arranged in a horizontal row of arches, anchor the lowermost part of the diagram.

Support material

parchment

Identifier

Ms. 436

Repository

Jewish Theological Seminary

Country

USA

Settlement

New York

Research literature

J. H. Chajes, The Kabbalistic Tree (University Park, PA: Penn State University Press, 2022), 196–200, 390.

Creation time

Date

1663