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Judaica and Hasidic Books and Manuscripts

Lot 86:

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Historic 1929 Jerusalem Financial Document – "Mishmereth Shabbath Committee" Official Receipt to Chief Rabbi A.Y. Kook (Maran HaRaYyah) Acknowledging Spiritual Leadership

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Start price: £100

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Description

An extraordinary and deeply evocative primary archival document from Mandatory Jerusalem, directly linking the supreme spiritual leader of the generation with the foundational public health and religious enforcement networks of the Holy City.

  • Overview: An official community receipt issued on the bilingual Hebrew-English institutional stationery of the central Mishmereth Shabbath Committee, explicitly filled out by hand and dated Tuesday, 3 Sivan 5689 (יום ג’ ג’ חודש סיון תרפ"ט / June 11, 1929).
  • The Recipient & Reverent Address: Proudly addressed to the preeminent halachic pioneer, kabbalist, and first Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of Mandatory Palestine, Maran Rabbi Avraham Yitzchak HaKohen Kook (מרן הרב אברהם יצחק הכהן קוק זצ"ל / the RaYyah). The scribe explicitly honors his official stature and spiritual leadership, writing: "לכבוד מרן הרב הראשי לא"י מוהרא"י הכהן קוק שליט"א".
  • Content: The document serves as a formal legal receipt acknowledging a generous contribution of Two Palestine Pounds (שתי לא"י) designated specifically for the general upkeep of the community medical and welfare apparatus ("למען עשיית בקור חולים הכללי"), demonstrating Rabbi Kook’s direct personal backing of wide-reaching charitable frameworks.
  • The Signatory Note: The receipt is concluded with an intricate, stylized graphic rabbinic signature on behalf of the executive committee’s treasury. In alignment with strict cataloging standards, because the calligraphic flourish cannot be authenticated with absolute historical certainty, it is left formally untranscribed—offering an exceptional research opportunity for specialized scholars of Jerusalem’s rabbinic genealogy.
  • Collector’s Highlight: Communes in Unity: This receipt captures a beautiful chapter in Jerusalem’s internal religious history. By explicitly addressing him as the Chief Rabbi of Eretz Yisrael (הרב הראשי לא"י) alongside the honorary מוהרא"י, the document showcases the deep, underlying institutional respect extended to Rabbi Kook across different circles of the Old Yishuv. This artifact stands as a profound physical monument to the shared dedication toward holy communal causes, like Bikur Cholim, that united the leaders of Jerusalem.

Condition report:

Status: Very Good Antique Condition.


Details: The single broadsheet receipt is structurally complete, sound, and visually stable, featuring its original vertical and horizontal folding lines. The paper displays a clean, soft uniform natural light cream age-patina with minor expected overall handling creases. The printed bilingual headings, the extensive handwritten ink text, and the elegant rabbinic signature remain perfectly bold, dark, and 100% distinct throughout.