AN IMPORTANT ESTHER SCROLL, WRITTEN AND ILLUSTRATED BY ARYEH LEIB BEN DANIEL OF GORAJ, RADENSDORF, MARGRAVIATE OF BRANDENBURG, JULY 29, 1735

One of the earliest known megillot to have been produced by this famed scribe and artist.

Aryeh Leib ben Daniel is one of the very few scribes whose evolving artistic career may be traced through the inscriptions found on his extant Esther scrolls. Originally from the town of Goraj, about 60 kilometers south of Lublin, his first known scrolls were produced in Poland in the early 1730s. By 1735, Aryeh Leib had left Poland and was working in the town of Radensdorf, Germany, as attested in the colophon of the present lot. After continuing his travels in Germany, Aryeh Leib immigrated to Italy and by 1744 had settled in the comune of Brescello. Two years later he had moved to Venice, where he penned several megillot between the years 1746 and 1748.

A total of eleven known original illustrated scrolls signed by Aryeh Leib have come down to us, and the present megillah is a splendid example of his earliest work. He is also known to have copied the text of the book of Esther onto parchment sheets that had been embellished with the engraved border designs of the renowned artist Francesco Griselini; four of these signed scrolls remain extant.

The Decorative Program of the Present Scroll

Images of the characters from the Purim story, drawn in a black and white grisaille technique, are positioned between the columns of text, and a lush border of flowering vines and putti further decorates the scroll. Medallions placed above the text feature the enlarged word ha-melekh (the king) held aloft by pairs of birds, lions, deer, and angels – a decorative motif found in three of the early scrolls that Aryeh Leib created before his arrival in Italy. Another element indicative of the early phase of Aryeh Leib’s work is the placement of the names of Haman’s sons as an inset within a larger column of text. Although this is not the customary manner in which the names of Haman’s sons are written, it is found in all five of the early scrolls produced by Aryeh Leib.

An unusual scribal practice meant to embellish the text also appears in this megillah: in five verses, Aryeh Leib has enlarged specific letters in successive words that spell out God’s name. This custom was initiated to express the idea that God’s hand in history can be discerned even when His name does not appear explicitly in the text.

A colophon inscribed along the lower edge of the seventh text panel informs us that the scroll was written and illustrated by Aryeh Leib ben Daniel “from the holy community of Goraj, near Turobin [Poland]. [The work] was completed on Wednesday, 1 Av [5]495 [July 9, 1735] here in Raden[sdorf] in the Margraviate of Branden[burg].”

This beautifully illustrated work exemplifies the early artistic style of Aryeh Leib ben Daniel of Goraj, one of the premier scribe-artists of megillot in the eighteenth century. With its expressive artistry and distinctive design, it is one of the most exciting scrolls to emerge in recent memory.

Sotheby’s is grateful to Menahem Schmelzer for providing information that aided in the cataloging of this manuscript.