Città del Vaticano Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana Ebr. 296

Note: Does not appear in Epstein's study. Richler (p. 232) notes it is distinct from both of Epstein's versions A and B, but does not elaborate on the details.

Authorship & Production

Place of Production

Byzantium

Date of Production

1400 - 1500

Source of Date of Production

Richler (2008)

Physical Description

Material

Paper

Total pages / folios

208

Height

206

Width

146

Prose or verse

Prose

Illustrations

No

Contents & Additional Texts

Other texts in the Manuscript

From Richler, pp. 231-32: the manuscript is two volumes bound together.

Volume I:

1. Ff. 1r–79r: [תרומת הכסף] Joseph b. Abba Mari ibn Kaspi's Terumat ha-Kessef. Extracts from Aristotle's Ethics and Plato's Politics based on the commentaries by Averroes.
2. Ff. 82r–90v: [מפתח של דקדוק] Mafteah shel Dikduk.
Ff. 80r-90: letters
3. Ff. 91r–108v: מראות האלהים Mar6ot Elohim, a philosophical work by Hanokh b. Solomon Al-Constantini.
4. F. 109r–v: ביאור מעשה מרכבה לר' דוד ב"ר יוסף קמחי Commentary on the Merkavah by David Kimhi.
5. Ff. 110r–116r: ביאור מעשה מרכבה על פי הנרבוני Adaptation of Moses Narboni's commentary on Part iii of the Guide of the Perplexed by Moses b. Maimon.

Volume II

6. Ff. 117r–121r: מאמרי פילוסופים or משלי הפילוסופים. Ma5amrei Filosofim or Mishlei ha-Filosofim.
7. Ff. 121r–122r: אגרת עלי ואגרת ארסטו מעניני ההצלחה האמתית Iggeret ha-Mussar ha-Kelalit. Epistle on ethics attributed to Aristotle.
8. Ff. 122v–124v: קערת כסף Ka5arat Kesef, ethical poem by Jehoseph Ha-Ezobi.
9. F. 125r–v: Calculations of the calendar and other extracts on astronomy.
10. Ff. 126r–127r: [מוסרי הפילוסופים] Musarei ha-Filosofim, Judah al-Harizi's Hebrew translation of Hunayn b. Ishaq's Arabic translation from the Greek.
11. Ff. 127v–130v: מגלת יהודית Megillat Yehudit. Hebrew translation of the Book of Judith from the Apocrypha, based on the Latin Vulgate version. [Note: 'It is a different translation from the one in MS Oxford, Bodleian Library Heb. d. 11, also based on the Vulgate, even though there are similarities in some of the passages. In his discussion of the Hebrew translations of the Book of Judith in his edition (Jerusalem 1957), Y.M. Grintz published a few passages from the Oxford manuscript, but did not mention this one.']
12. Ff. 131v–145v: מעשה סנדבר Tales of Sendebar.
13. F. 146r–v: אגרת מאישטרי בון גודאש נתן זצ"ל Letter in defence of the study of philosophy by Judah Nathan b. Solomon.
14. Ff. 147r–182r: אגרת בעלי חיים Iggeret Ba5alei Hayyim (“The Animals” Collection). A translation by Kalonymus b. Kalonymus of the end of the twenty-fifth book of a Muslim encyclopedia.
15. Ff. 182v–186v: Poems on the Maimonidean controversy and other subjects.
16. Ff. 186v–187r: Notes on the calendar.

Catalogues & Research Literature

Catalogue

Richler, Hebrew Manuscripts in the Vatican Library: Catalogue (2008), https://www.nli.org.il/en/manuscripts/NNL_ALEPH990001934500205171/NLI

Research Material

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