Bidspirit auction | EPSTEIN, BARUCH HALEVI. (Author of

EPSTEIN, BARUCH HALEVI. (Author of Torah Temimah, 1860-1941). Autograph Letter Signed, in Hebrew, written to Avraham Harkavy. Critiques a Hebrew book by one A. Schack, intended for use by schoolteachers. Rabbi Epstein includes a lengthy extract from the book, which has not been published. Three pages. Novogrudok, 8th April, 1908. R. Baruch Halevi Epstein (1860-1941) was a brilliant Torah scholar whose works Torah Temimah, Mekor Baruch, and Baruch She’amar are all classics in their respective fields, showcasing his mastery of rabbinic literature. His father, R. Yechiel Michel Epstein of Novardok, was the author of the Aruch HaShulchan (see lot 6 and next lot). His maternal uncle was R. Naftali Tzvi Yehuda Berlin, the Netziv of Volozhin, under whom Rabbi Epstein studied in his youth. In his scholarly memoir, the 4-volume Mekor Baruch, Rabbi Epstein provides a lengthy, personal account of the Netziv, his wife, and many other topics which are invaluable for understanding the world of the Lithuanian yeshiva of the 19th century. Avraham (Albert) Harkavy (1835-1919) was an historian and head of the Oriental Division in the Imperial Public Library, Saint Petersburg (an astonishing achievement for a Jew in Czarist Russia). In his youth Harkavy received a classic rabbinic education in the great yeshiva of Volozhin, to which he supplemented a modern rabbinic education from the maskilic Rabbinical Seminary of Vilna, followed by studies in Semitic languages and literature in universities in Berlin and Paris. Harkavy wrote a monumental history of the Jews of Russia, and also made important contributions to Karaite Studies and more.