Select manuscript from this collection: B26  S60 S77  S102  98/107

Country of Location:
Country of Location
Switzerland
Location:
Location
Zürich
Library / Collection:
Library / Collection
Braginsky Collection
Shelfmark:
Shelfmark
S75
Manuscript Title:
Manuscript Title
Megillah Esther (מגילת אסתר) / Esther scroll
Caption:
Caption
Parchment · 1 f. · 10.2 x 170.5 cm · Baghdad · around 1850
Language:
Language
Hebrew
Manuscript Summary:
Manuscript Summary
In contrast to most Esther scrolls, the first two decorative fields of this megillah emphasize the central importance of Mordecai. First there is written, in burgundy letters: “The Scroll of Esther the Queen and Mordecai the Jew” and then in orange letters “In the fortress Shushan lived a Jew by the name of Mordecai, son of Jair son of Shimei son of Kish” (Esther 2:5). This genealogy is traced back to Abraham on the borders along the top and bottom of the entire scroll. This is followed by the lineage of the opponent Haman, which was taken from the Targum Riscon, the Aramaic translation of the original Hebrew text. (flu)
DOI (Digital Object Identifier):
DOI (Digital Object Identifier
10.5076/e-codices-bc-s-0075 (http://dx.doi.org/10.5076/e-codices-bc-s-0075)
Permanent link:
Permanent link
http://e-codices.unifr.ch/en/list/one/bc/s-0075
IIIF Manifest URL:
IIIF Manifest URL
IIIF Drag-n-drop http://e-codices.unifr.ch/metadata/iiif/bc-s-0075/manifest.json
How to quote:
How to quote
Zürich, Braginsky Collection, S75: Megillah Esther (מגילת אסתר) / Esther scroll (http://e-codices.unifr.ch/en/list/one/bc/s-0075).
Online Since:
Online Since
10/08/2020
External resources:
External resources
Rights:
Rights
Images:
(Concerning all other rights see each manuscript description and our Terms of use)
Document Type:
Document Type
Scroll/Roll
Century:
Century
19th century
Decoration:
Decoration
Fully Painted, Margin, Ornamental
Liturgica hebraica:
Liturgica hebraica
Megillah
Annotation Tool - Log in

e-codices · 07/16/2020, 15:40:38

Zwei in leuchtenden Farben ausgemalte Einlei­tungsabschnitte mit Rosettenmustern und Wort­folgen in monumentalen Buchstaben eröffnen diese Megilla. Das ist typisch für irakische Megillot aus dem 19. Jahrhundert.
Während die klassischen Interpretationen der Purim­-Erzählung die herausragende Relevanz Esthers hervorheben, betont hier das erste Zierfeld am Beginn der Rolle in burgunderfarbenen Lettern die zentrale Bedeutung Mordechais: «Die Megilla der Königin Esther und des Juden Mordechais» (Megillat Ester ha-malka u-Mordechai ha-jehudi). Auch das zweite Zierfeld stellt Mordechai mit einem Zitat in orangeroten Lettern in den Vorder­grund: «Im Palast von Susa lebte ein Jude mit Namen Mordechai, Sohn des Jaïr, Sohn des Schimi, Sohn des Kisch» (Esther 2:5). Die Genealogie Mordechais wird in diesem Zitat fortgesetzt, aber auch in den Bordüren oben und unten über die gesamte Megilla hinweg. Die Abfolge der Generati­onen reicht zurück bis zum Stammvater Abraham. An diese Aufzählung schliesst sich die Geschlechterabfolge des Kontrahenten Haman an, die allerdings mit Jakobs Widersacher Esau endet. Diese Genealogien sind nicht Teil des biblischen Textes, sondern dem Targum rischon entnommen, einer aramäischen Übersetzung des hebräischen Urtexts aus dem 7. Jahrhundert, die auch Elemente der rabbinischen Erzählliteratur (Midrasch) enthält. Die beiden Stammbäume sollen die Rechtschaffenheit des jüdischen Volkes seit Urzeiten einerseits und die bösen Absichten seiner Unterdrücker andererseits unterstreichen. Ausser­ dem betonen sie, dass die Rettung des jüdischen Volkes auf den Verdiensten seiner rechtschaffenen Vorfahren beruht.

Schöne Seiten. Jüdische Schriftkultur aus der Braginsky Collection, Hrsg. von Emile Schrijver und Falk Wiesemann, Zürich 2011, S. 306.

e-codices · 07/08/2020, 16:38:37

This megillah, which opens with two brightly colored prefatory panels, is further embellished with a band of enlarged ornamental text comprising the genealogies of Mordecai and Haman that frame the entire scroll. This scheme of decoration is characteristic of megillot produced in Iraq during the nineteenth century.
Whereas many classical interpretations of the Purim story celebrate of the primacy of Esther’s role as the savior of the Jewish people, the decorative text on this megillah emphasizes the importance and centrality of Mordecai to the Purim narrative. While most Esther scrolls are devoid of a title, when one is present it simply states Megillat Ester. In contrast, the initial panel here bears an expanded title, Megillat Ester ha-Malkah u-Mordekhai ha-Yehudi (The Scroll of Esther the Queen and Mordecai the Jew), penned in large purple letters and surrounded by a frame of multihued rosettes.
The second introductory panel calls additional attention to Mordecai by prominently featuring a quotation from the text (Esther 2:5): Ish Yehudi hayah be-Shushan ha-Birah u-Shemo Mordekhai ben Yair ben Shimi ben Kish (In the fortress Shushan lived a Jew by the name of Mordecai, son of Jair son of Shimei son of Kish). The ancestry of Mordecai continues and is greatly expanded upon in the monumental orange text that runs along the entire length of the scroll. In the upper and lower borders, the scribe penned the genealogy of Mordecai, going back some thirty-three generations to the patriarch Abraham. This enumeration is followed by a briefer and less distinguished lineage for Haman. The elaborate genealogies of Mordecai and Haman that appear in the Braginsky Collection megillah are not part of the biblical text of Esther. Rather, they are taken from the Targum Rishon, an Aramaic translation the origins of which date to the seventh century and which incorporates elements of midrash. In this translation the respective lineages of Mordecai and Haman are presented in order to establish the righteousness of the Jewish people and the wickedness of their oppressors, as well as to emphasize that the salvation of the Jewish people was dependent on the merit of their righteous ancestors.

A Journey through Jewish Worlds. Highlights from the Braginsky collection of Hebrew manuscripts and printed books, ed. E. M. Cohen, S. L. Mintz, E. G. L. Schrijver, Amsterdam, 2009, p. 272.

Add an annotation
Annotation Tool - Log in

Schöne Seiten. Jüdische Schriftkultur aus der Braginsky Collection, Hrsg. von Emile Schrijver und Falk Wiesemann, Zürich 2011, S. 306.

A Journey through Jewish Worlds. Highlights from the Braginsky collection of Hebrew manuscripts and printed books, ed. E. M. Cohen, S. L. Mintz, E. G. L. Schrijver, Amsterdam, 2009, p. 272.

Add a bibliographical reference

Reference Images and Binding


Front cover