Interesting and important unique bibliographic letter, entirely handwritten, signed and stamped by the mighty gaon Rabbi Mordechai Brisk, may his blood be avenged. Mahara”m Brisk was one of the geonim of Hungary, av beit din and rosh yeshivah of Toshnad and son of the sacred gaon Rabbi Yehoshua Brisk, av beit din of Tiszadada. Toshnad, 1936.
The letter does not mention the addressee’s name, but it is in all probability R’ Shmuel Ephraim Tiktin, who edited an encyclopedia of his contemporaries. He sent letters to hundreds of rabbis with a request that they write their own biographical details. In this unique letter, Rabbi Mordechai describes his life from birth:
1) My name is Mordechai Brisk, son of the gaon Rabbi Yehoshua z”l.
2) I was born in 1887 in Dada, Hungary.
3) I studied at the yeshivah of the gaon, the author of Shu”t Levushei Mordechai , av beit din of Mád (the sacred gaon Rabbi Mordechai Winkler).
4) I was granted rabbinic ordination by the geonim , the av beit din of Tolcsva, author of Shu”t Yad Yitzchak (the gaon Rabbi Avraham Yitzchak Glick) and the av beit din of Selish z”l (the gaon Rabbi Pinchas Chaim Klein of Selish).
5) I served in the Margareten rabbinate.
6) I published the work Binyan Yehoshua as well as a book of responsa on the four parts of Shulchan Aruch, derashot on Shabbat HaGadol and Shabbat Shuvah, and a work on Talmudic topics.
7) Three hundred young men study under my supervision.
Many sources (including Wikipedia) incorrectly list his date of birth as 1886. We have here, clearly, in his own penmanship, that he was born in 1887.
Refer to the Hebrew catalog text for a brief biography of the gaon Rabbi Mordechai Brisk – Mahara”m Brisk .
[1] leaf paper, entirely handwritten and signed by Rabbi Mordechai, with his signature. Official stationery. 20.5×16.5 cm.
Moderate-fine condition. Restored blemishes and tears in the margins; artistically restored letter.