General

Title

London, BL, Ms. Or. 6465

Manuscript name

The Magnificent Parchment

Summary

This is a well-preserved witness of the family of large manuscript rotuli ("ilanot") to which we have given the name "The Magnificent Parchment." It was copied by the Polish kabbalist David Darshan (ca. 1527–late sixteenth century) during his time in Modena in 1556. Unlike some luxury copies of the Magnificent Parchment that display rich colors and gold leaf, the Darshan copy was almost certainly made for the copyist's personal use. Unlike some of the commissioned luxury rotuli, however, Darshan was an erudite kabbalist and copied (and perhaps even corrected) the texts of the Magnificent Parchment with a precision that sets it apart from other witnesses.

Support material

parchment

Main language

Rabbinic Hebrew

Hand description

Ashkenazic

Identifier

Or. 6465

NLI identifier

990000557120205171

Repository

The British Library

Country

England

Settlement

London

Colophon

"דוד בן הגאון הקדוש מוהר"ר משה דרשן מקראקא בק"ק מודינא שנת ו'י'ש' תקוה לאחריתך" [=שט"ז].

Research literature

G. Margoliouth, Catalogue of the Hebrew and Samaritan Manuscripts in the British Museum, 4 vols. (London, 1899–1935), 829. J. H. Chajes, The Kabbalistic Tree (University Park, PA: Penn State University Press, 2022), 65–66, 375.

Creation time

Date

1556