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Judaica and Hasidic Books and Manuscripts

Lot 92:

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Historic 1945 Bnei Brak Rabbinic Document – Signed by Rabbi Alexander Sender Gedalia Tchorsh under the Stamp of the Amshinover Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Tzvi Kalish (Dated תש"ו)

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Start price: £100

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Description

An extraordinary and unique primary document from the immediate post-war era, capturing a rare intersection of elite Gur and Amshinov Hasidic figures managing the administrative rabbinic foundations of Bnei Brak.

  • Overview: An official handwritten communal response letter drafted in a sharp European-rabbinic cursive, explicitly dated 3 Cheshvan 5706 (ג’ מרחשון תש"ו / October 1945), written just weeks after the conclusion of World War II.
  • The Author & Biography: Written and signed by Rabbi Alexander Sender Gedalia Tchorsh (הגאון רבי אלכסנדר סנדר גדליה טכורש זצ"ל; 1860–1951). Born in Nowydwór into a prominent rabbinic family, he was an ardent Gerer Hasid intimately close to the Sfat Emet and Imrei Emet. A pioneer of the religious Mizrachi movement in Poland, he immigrated to Israel in 1924, where he became one of the chief builders of Bnei Brak’s rabbinic institutions and a prolific author of works such as Ateret Chen, HaMivchan, and Kedushat Yisrael. He signs this document with his temporary wartime title: "מ"מ הרב כאן" (Acting/Substitute Rabbi of the City).
  • The Amshinover Rebbe’s Seal: The letter is officially validated by the prominent purple ink signet stamp of the Chief Rabbi of Bnei Brak, Rabbi Yosef Tzvi Kalish (האדמו"ר רבי יוסף צבי קאליש זצ"ל מביאלה-אמשינוב; 1885–1957). The stamp explicitly reads: "יוסף צבי קאליש אבד"ק בני-ברק א"י…".
  • The Content: Addressed to the Chief Rabbinate of Tel Aviv-Jaffa, the letter functions as an official status report regarding missing persons inquiries ("בדבר המבוקש"), referencing an earlier query from 16 Tishrei, displaying the frantic post-Holocaust family tracing network managed by the local rabbinate. Per professional standards, the body text remains untranscribed.
  • Collector’s Highlight: Original documentation from the early developmental years of Bnei Brak, signed by Rav Tchorsh under the direct authority and seal of the Amshinover Rebbe, is exceptionally scarce. Merging elite Hasidic court histories with early land-of-Israel municipal rabbinics, this lot carries immense museum-quality premium value.

Condition report:

Status: Fine Archival Condition.


Physical Dimensions: Approx. 15×21 cm (5.9×8.3 inches) — horizontal rabbinic memo format.

Details: The single custom-cut paper sheet is structurally intact, stable, and textually complete, displaying standard vertical and horizontal structural folds. It exhibits one original archival binder filing hole punch along the upper left margin, positioned entirely clear of any text boundaries. The handwritten ink text block, the unique notation under the signature, and the large violet rabbinic seal of the Amshinover Rebbe remain fully dark, clean, and 100% legible throughout.