Auction No. 100
Rare and special items
- (-) Remove The Halberstam Dynasty filter The Halberstam Dynasty
- (-) Remove The Halberstam Dynasty filter The Halberstam Dynasty
Mazal Tov wishes upon the birth of a son, signed by Admor Sinai Halberstam, Av Beit Din of Zmigrod and its environs.
Specifications: [2] pages, letterhead. 22x13 cm. 8 lines in his handwriting, with his signature at the conclusion.
Content: Blessings upon the birth of a son to the chassid Yisrael Menachem. The Admor added a few lines in his handwriting. Includes the blessing, "Nothing bad should continue to befall you," apparently an allusion to the difficult reality of Polish Jewry at the time, with the surge of anti-Semitism.
Background: Admor Sinai Halberstam was born in 1870. His father was Rabbi Baruch of Gorlitz, the son of the Divrei Chaim of Sanz. He served as rabbi of Kolshitz and, from 1907, rabbi of Zmigrod. He dedicated himself to G-dly service and was exceptionally well-versed in Torah. He woke up at "chatzot" (midnight) every night to study Zohar until the morning prayers. He moved to Krakow. During the Holocaust he fled to Lemberg and was exiled to Siberia where he died in the Omsk Forests on the 26th of Tammuz, 1941. His sons managed to bury him and erect a monument over his grave. A large volume of his novellae, prepared for print, was lost during the Holocaust.
Condition: Fine-very fine. Fold marks. Stain in the margins, far from the text.
Lot 77
Letter from Admor Chona Halberstam asking for prayers on his behalf. Rzeszow [Reisha], [1938]
Letter in the handwriting of Admor [Elchanan] Chona Halberstam of Kołaczyce, Reisha 1938.
Specifications: [1] leaf, letterhead on graph paper. 29x22 cm. The first 14 lines of the letter were written and signed in the handwriting of the world-renowned Admor Chona Halberstam.
Content: Along with blessings to a donor, the Admor wishes: "...and quickly Hashem should have mercy upon us and redeem us forever...." In his great humility, he then adds a request that the addressee pray for him: "...I ask that you pray for us, that it should be a happy holiday..."
On the back, there are an additional three lines from his brother, Rabbi Chaim Baruch Halberstam. There are another five lines from an additional writer which refer to the terrible suffering they were undergoing: "...and we should also merit a happy holiday...and the great yoke of exile that we are suffering from recently, and certainly Hashem in His compassion will redeem us forever..."
Background: Rabbi Chona ben Menachem Mendel Halberstam (c. 1880-1942) was the Admor of Kołaczyce. In 1923, he was appointed rabbi of Rzeszow. He established the Zera Kodesh Yeshiva together with some youths.
His works Bein HaShemashot, Torat Mikvah and other compilations that were printed anonymously were published after the war with the title Divrei Chona.
Condition: Fine, fold marks, stains.
The book Divrei Chaim on the Torah and novellae on the Talmud, by Rabbi Chaim Halberstam of Sanz. Munkacs, 1873. First edition.
Specifications: [2], 84, [5] leaves. 22 cm. One volume out of two. Stefansky Chassidut 119.
Unique Features: His great-grandson's handwritten signature is in the margins of the title page: "I took it, I the small one Aryeh Halberstam Av Beit Din of Muszyna."
Background: Rabbi Aryeh Leib Halberstam (1870-1942), son of Rabbi Moshe of Bardiow, son of Rabbi Baruch of Gorlice, the fifth son of Rabbi Chaim of Sanz. Son-in-law of Rabbi Shmuel Rokeach, Av Beit Din of Sokal, the son of Rabbi Yehoshua of Belz. He assisted his father-in-law in the rabbinate there as a dayan. Beginning in the the year 1904, he was a Rabbi and Admor in Muszyna until he was murdered in the Holocaust. [Rabbeinu HaKadosh M'Sanz part two, page 350].
Condition: Moderate-fine. Glue reinforcements in the title page border and a few leaves. Water stains, mainly on the last leaves. Simple binding.