The Masorah of Elijah ha-Naqdan: An Edition of Ashkenazic Micrographical Notes

by Élodie Attia

Overview

Following Levita’s statement, the Masorah transmitted by medieval illuminated manuscripts was generally considered as less significant for the study of the biblical and masoretical knowledge in the Jewish world. The biblical codices produced in Ashkenaz were considerably disregarded compared to Spanish codices. Challenging this assertion, this work engages in a reflection on the link between the standard Eastern tradition and the Ashkenazic biblical text-culture of the 13^th century.

Élodie Attia provides an edition of thirteen cases taken from MS Vat. Ebr. 14, offering the oldest series of Masoretic notes written inside figurative and ornamental designs. Its critical apparatus offers an unprecedented comparison with the oldest Eastern and Ashkenazic sources to evaluate if the scribe paid more attention to aesthetic details than to the textual contents.

In an unexpected way, the Masoretic notes of Elijah ha-Naqdan, even written in figurative forms, show a close philological link with the Masorah of the eastern Tiberian sources and prove that the presence of figurative elements neither represents a loss nor a distortion of Masoretic knowledge, but rather illustrates a development in the Masoretic tradition.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9783110417913
Publisher:	De Gruyter
Publication date:	12/18/2015
Series:	Materiale Textkulturen , #11
Pages:	174
Product dimensions:	6.69(w) x 9.45(h) x 0.02(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Élodie Attia, Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements vii

Prologue 1

Introduction 7

Masoretic Contents versus Masoretic Layout? 8

What is a Figurative Masorah (Masora Figurata)? 9

Why Edit Figurative Masorah? 11

Critical Editions of Masoretic Notes 13

Structure of the Edition 14

Editorial Steps for Masoretic Micrographical Notes 15

The Manuscripts of the Critical Apparatus 18

Expected Results 22

Edition 23

Editorial Rules 25

Important Remarks to the Reader 27

Case 1 f. 63v, Genesis 50:21-Exodus 1:10 29

Case 2 f. 67^blsr, Exodus 5:4-5:15 35

Case 3 f. 72v, Exodus 9:34-10:8 43

Case 4 f. 75v, Exodus 12:7-12:17 48

Case 5 f. 77v, Exodus 13:7-13:19 55

Case 6 f. 85v, Exodus 20:25-21:11 61

Case 7 f. 89v, Exodus 24:9-25:3 68

Case 8 f. 93r, Exodus 26:19-26:32 73

Case 9 f. 98r, Exodus 30:1-30:14 78

Case 10 f. 100v, Exodus 32:13-32:25 84

Case 11 f. 101r, Exodus 32:26-33:1 91

Case 12 f. 104r, Exodus 35:1-35:15 98

Case 13 f. 113r, Exodus 40:37-Leviticus 1:10 103

Concluding Remarks 109

Appendices 115

Appendix 1 Categories of Masoretic Notes According to Shape 117

Appendix 2 MS Vatican, Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana, Vat. Ebr. 14 119

Appendix 3 MS Berlin, Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin, Or. Quart. 9 131

Appendix 4 Statistical Results 139

Index of Hebrew Manuscripts 141

Index of Biblical Verses and Occurrences 143

Subject Index 151

Plates 153

Publication Bibliography 155

Credits 163