One of the world’s oldest Esther scrolls, also known as megillah, has found its last home in Jerusalem after it was recently donated to the National Library of Israel (NLI), which has the largest collection in the world of text Judaica.
In the scrolls of Esther is the story of the Book of Esther in Hebrew and traditionally read in Jewish communities at the festival of Purim, which will be held on February 25-28 this year.
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Esther’s scroll from the mid-15th century was donated to the National Library of Israel
(Photo: National Library of Israel)
Scholars have confirmed that the recently discovered scroll was written by a scribe on the Iberian peninsula around 1465, before the expulsion of the Spaniards and Portuguese in the late 15th century. These conclusions are based on both stylistic and scientific evidence, including carbon-14 dates.
The megillah is inscribed in brown ink on leather in an elegant Sephardic script, resembling a Torah scroll.
The first panel, before the text of the Book of Esther, contains the blessings recited before and after the reading of the megillah, and testifies to the ritual use of this scroll in an Iberian Jewish community before -Expulsion.
According to experts, there are very few Esther scrolls from the Middle Ages in general, and from the 15th century in particular.
Torah scrolls and Esther scrolls from pre-Expulsion Spain in Spain and Portugal are even rarer, and only a few are known.
Prior to its release, this scroll was the only complete 15th-century megillah in private hands.
The medieval scroll is a gift from Michael Jesselson and his family. His father, Ludwig Jesselson, was the founding chairman of the International Library Council.
Dr. Yoel Finkelman, curator of the NLI’s Haim Collection and Hanna Salomon Judaica, said the new addition is “a rare testament to the rich culture of Iberia peninsula cosmetic products.” This is one of the earliest Esther Scrolls in existence, and one of the few megillot from the 15th century in the world. “
“It is an honor for the Library to preserve this treasure and to preserve the pre-Expulsion Iberian Jewish legacy for the Jews and the world,” he said.