Auction 59 Judaica - Books, Manuscripts, Rabbinical Letters, Ceremonial Art
Feb 20, 2018 (Your local time)
Israel
 8 Ramban St. Jerusalem
The auction has ended

LOT 295:

Interesting Letter by Rabbi Yosef Dov HaLevi Soloveitchik - Inquiry Regarding Location of a Holocaust Refugee

Sold for: $600
Start price:
$ 400
Auction house commission: 23%
VAT: On commission only
tags:

Letter handwritten and signed by R. "Yosef Dov Ber HaLevi" Soloveitchik. [Jerusalem, ca. 1944].
Sent to R. Shmuel Szczedrowicki, a head of Agudat Yisrael in Tel Aviv, who was active in rescuing Holocaust refugees throughout Russia. The letter contains an inquiry regarding the location of a Holocaust refugee who reached Bukhara, and apparently continued his wanderings. R. Soloveitchik investigates the matter and makes "Brisker diyukim" from the telegrams received from that Jew, to try and discover his location. An addition appears at the foot of the letter, signed: "The aforementioned".
The reason behind the attempt to locate the refugee is unclear, whether to send him rescue packages or for purposes of writing a divorce bill, etc. The "diyukim" in the letter are characteristic to his father, R. Yitzchak Ze'ev of Brisk, and the letter was probably written at his behest.
R. Yosef Dov (R. Yoshe Ber) HaLevi Soloveitchik (1916-1981), eldest son of the Brisker Rav R. Yitzchak Ze'ev, the Gryz. During the Holocaust, he immigrated with his father to Jerusalem, and assisted him in founding the Brisk Yeshiva in Jerusalem, which he later headed. He was one of the most illustrious Torah scholars of the previous generation, and many of his disciples are famous rabbis and heads of yeshivas throughout the world.
The recipient, R. Shmuel Szczedrowicki (1907-1978), Rabbi of Białystok and a head of Agudat Yisrael in Tel Aviv. During the Holocaust, he was sent to the Far East on rescue missions on behalf of Agudat Yisrael and the Organization of Rabbis from Poland, to tend to the needs of refugees in the Far East, in Siberia and throughout Russia, in the capacity of representative of the Jewish Agency and the exiled Polish government.
[1] leaf. 10.5 x 16 cm. Approx. 13 autograph lines. Good condition.