Mishneh Torah L’HaRamba”m [first part] Venice, 1550, with dozens of glosses in ancient Oriental scripts from the 16th century. Among the dozens of glosses by unidentified writers, there is a seven-line gloss on leaf 67 written in Rabbi Betzalel Ashkenazi’s holy hand; some of these glosses were printed in an article in Kovetz Moriah [attached to the book].
Rabbi Betzalel Ashkenazi (c. 1520-1592) was among the leading Later Authorities and author of Shitah Mekubetzet . His most important and famous disciple was Rabbi Yitzchak Luria – the holy Ar”i. Another renowned disciple of his was Rabbi Shlomo Adani, author of the Melechet Shlomo commentary on the mishnah. He was also an expert adjudicator, and one of the leading responders of his time, some of his responsa were printed in Shu”t Rabbi Betzalel Ashkenazi . The famous work Shitah Mekubetzet is one of the foundation stones of commentary on Shas. Rabbi Betzalel would write comments and glosses in the margins of books he learned. Some of these glosses are printed today in some editions of Shas under “Hagahot Shitah Mekubetzet,” for the order of Kadshim, in which there were many errors, and he corrected the text. There are additional glosses by him printed, which were copied from the sheets of the Talmud from which he studied.
The volume is comprised of two editions of mishneh Torah L’HaRamba”m which were printed in Venice in 1510, the Bragadin edition and the Justinian edition. As a result of this combination, a title page is lacking as well as a number of leaves. Moderate condition. Some of the leaves underwent professional restoration. Worming marks. Reinforcing stickers. New leather binding. The expert opinion of Rabbi Shimon Schwartz in attched.