Recent Acquisitions for the Kessler Reformation Collection
November 19, 2001
Two books by Sebastian Munster, one of the greatest Christian Hebraists of the 16th century, were purchased at auction recently by the Pitts Theology Library and are the most recent additions to the Richard C. Kessler Reformation Collection, which now numbers over 2,600 items (all issued by 1570).
Munster played an important role as a mediator of Jewish learning to Christian scholars by means of his translations of important Jewish grammars, dictionaries, etc. into Latin and his editions of the Hebrew Bible.
The first of the items is the first Latin edition of Munster's translation of Elijah Levita's Hebrew grammar (Basel: Froben, 1537), and the second is Munster's Latin translation of David Kimchi's biblical (Old Testament)lexicon and grammar (Basel: Froben, 1564). Levita was arguably the greatest Hebrew grammarian of Munster's day and one with whom Munster corresponded, and Kimchi was a medieval Jewish commentator of great reknown (still quoted often today).
These two books bring to 19 the number of publications in the Kessler Collection that derive from Munster. Others in this body of material include the first and second editions of his two-volume, folio edition of the Hebrew Bible (Hebrew text plus Latin translation and rabbinic commentary), his Hebrew and Aramaic dictionary and grammar, and his exposition of the Jewish calendar.