Responsa of the Rosh – Constantinople, 1517 – First Edition

Responsa of the Rosh – Constantinople, 1517 – First Edition
Responsa of the Rosh. [Constantinople: Samuel Nahmias and his son Moses, 1517]. First edition.
Responsa of the Rosh is one of the first responsa works printed in the early days of printing, and it is one of the primary sources used by halachic authorities. The present edition was used by R. Yosef Karo when composing Beit Yosef and Shulchan Aruch, and by the Rema for his glosses.
In contrast with regular responsa works, this composition was arranged and edited in order to turn it into a book of classified rulings. The responsa of the Rosh were gathered into one hundred and eight chapters (kelalim), according to topic. The foreword to the present edition describes the editing process – the disciples of the Rosh at first recorded his responsa unsystematically, until a significant amount of material had been collected. One disciple then gathered together responsa on similar questions, until everything was organized according to topic. The foreword opens with a portrayal of the preeminence of the Rosh.
The text, which was corrupted in later editions by Christian censorship, is preserved in this edition in its original state (see: Y.S. Yudlov, introduction to Responsa of the Rosh, Machon Yerushalayim edition, Jerusalem 1994, p. 10).
The printing was completed on the 33rd day of the Omer 1517, as stated in the colophon of the final page.
Signatures and inscriptions on the title page: "Shlomo son of R. Zechariah Sachsen", "Nissim Gabbai son of R. Chaim Yitzchak", an unidentified calligraphic signature, and another signature which was scraped off. Ownership inscription on final leaf: "Chaim Ashkenazi son of Moshe Ashkenazi".
[190] leaves. 27 cm. Fair condition. Stains, including large dampstains. Mold to several leaves. Worming affecting text in several places. Tears and open tears to first leaves and to final leaf, affecting text, repaired in part with paper. Leaves [2] and [5] with smaller margins (presumably supplied from a different copy). Inscriptions. Signatures. Stamp, blurred. Old binding.