Zürich, Zentralbibliothek, Ms. Heidenheim 123
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Dr. Justine Isserles, Associate Researcher, EPHE-SAPRAT, Paris, 2020.

Handschriftentitel: Siddur according to the Roman rite
Entstehungsort: Italy
Entstehungszeit: 15th century
Beschreibstoff: Vellum
Umfang: I + 304 + I‎
Format: 128-129 x 92-93 mm‎
Seitennummerierung: Foliation from right to left in Arabic numerals printed in ink in the top left corners of each folio from 1 to 12 and 102 to 304. Folios between 13 and 101 were numbered in grey pencil. Sometimes the numbering in grey pencil has been added to the printed numbering, in a count of folios that is behind by one number, e.g. printed number: f. 151 and grey pencil: f. 150, same for folio 156 (155 in grey pencil) (only the printed foliation is taken into consideration here).
Error on folio 56r where it is written 36 instead of 56. The folio count continues correctly afterwards with folio 57. ‎
Lagenstruktur: There are 32 quires of 26 quinions and 6 quaternions: I-XIV quinions (1r-140v); XV quaternion (141r-146v) [The last two folios of this quire are missing, see 2 stubs between folios 146v and 147r ]; XVI-XVII quinions (147r-166v); XVIII quaternion (167r-174v) ; XIX-XXIV quinions (175r-234v) ; XXV-XXVII quaternions (235r-258v) ; XXVIII quaternion (259r-264v) [The last two folios of this quire is missing, see 2 stubs between folios 264v and 265r ]; XXIX-XXXII quinions (265r-304v).
No catchwords.
Zustand: Well preserved manuscript. Some faded text especially at the beginning of the manuscript until folio 24r (then sparsely throughout, e.g. ff. 147r, 150v, 249r) and a few minor humidity stains on some folios of the manuscript.
Seiteneinrichtung: No pricking. The ruling is in brown ink.‎
1+1 columns of text (except for folio 141r with 1+2 columns). 10 ruled lines for 10 written lines. Letter elongation and compression at the end of lines. Sometimes the end of words overlaps into the left lateral margin and more rarely, the scribe found the solution to add the last letter of a word in exponential mode above it, touching the justification column (e.g. ff. 26r, 111r, 139r).‎
Full page layout. Inner and outer indentations of the text around the initial words.
Schrift und Hände: Italian bookhand vocalized script for the main text in medium module, except between folios 229r and 233r where the vocalized script is square and in a very large module. The initial words are in large module square Italian script. Text on folios 173r-174r and 229r-233r are written in large square vocalized letters. Some words written in very large letters on folios 89v, 160v, 162r, 238r, 265r, 300v. Monumental initial word in square letters on folio 229r. There are instructions between the prayers also in a bookhand script but not vocalized and in a very small module. One scribe copied this manuscript, named Yehudah (‎יהודה‎) on folio 293r, according to Joseph Prijs (2018, p. 129) [However, after verification the scribe’s name was not found]. ‎
Buchschmuck: Presence of rubricated initial words throughout the manuscript (e.g. ff. 3r, 61r, 67r, 68r, 149r, 267r, 274r) and a rubricated paragraph in small bookhand non-vocalized script on folio 128v.‎
f. 301r: doodles.‎
Spätere Ergänzungen: No later additions except for some scribbles on folios 174v; 300v-301r.
Einband: Brown leather binding on wooden boards of the 16th century (135 x 95 mm). The boards have a faded blindstamped scroll motif framing them. A new brown leather 3 banded spine bears a paper sticker with the shelfmark, ‘Ms. Heid. 123’ (the sticker is not present in the image of the digitized manuscript but has since been added). Two small holes in each of the boards indicate where two clasps for two straps were situated.‎
Inhaltsangabe:
This well-preserved pocket-sized Siddur, enclosing the statutory prayers of the Jewish liturgical year (daily, sabbath and new month prayers, Ḥanukkah, Purim, Pessaḥ, Shavuot, Rosh ha-Shanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, Shemini Atzeret), is a precious witness to the production of these small prayer books for personal use in 15th-century Italy. An anonymous censor scratched out some portions of text (f. 51r/v) and words (65v, 193r, 235v, 294r) on several folios of the manuscript.
Note: when the Hebrew title appear in parentheses ( ), it is not indicated in the manuscript but has been added by the author for harmonizing and clarity purposes).‎
  • ff. 1r-67r :Daily morning prayers (‎תפילת שחרית לכל‎)
  • ff. 67r-72r : ‎סדר תפלת ערבית ‏‎ (Order of evening prayers)‎
  • ff. 72r-79r : ‎סדר קריאת המטה‎ (Order of the Qiriat [Shema] before going to bed)‎
  • ff. 80r/v : Blank pages
  • ff. 81r-146r : עניין שבת‎‎ (Subject of Shabbat) (note that here the word ‎עניין‎ has been spelled with two ‎יי‎/yods )‎
    • (ff. 81r-89v) : Friday evening prayers (‎קבלת שבת‎)
    • (ff. 89v-128v) : Shabbat morning prayers (‎שחרית לשבת‎)‎
    • (ff. 129r-134r) : ‎מוסף לשבת (Shabbat Mussaf prayers, concluding morning prayers)
    • (ff. 134r-138r) : Shabbat afternoon prayers (‎מנחה לשבת‎)‎
    • (ff. 138r-146r) : Evening service after the end of Shabbat (‎ערבית למוצאי שבת‎)‎
  • f. 146v : Blank page
  • ff. 147r-160r : ‎עינין ראש חדש‎ (Subject of the New month)‎
    • (ff. 147r-157v) : Addition for the morning prayer (‎שחרית לראש חדש‎)‎
    • (ff. 158r-160r) : Addition for the Mussaf prayer (‎מוסף לראש חודש‎)‎
  • ff. 160v-162r : ‎ענין חנוכה‎ (Subject of Ḥanukkah), addition for the celebration of Ḥanukkah
  • ff. 162r-163r : ענין פורים‎ (Subject of Purim), addition of the celebration of Purim
  • ff. 163r-165r : בפסח‎ (On Pessaḥ), additions for the evening and morning prayers‎
  • ff. 165r-169v : מוסף‎ (Addition for Pessaḥ during the Mussaf prayer)‎
  • ff. 169v-172v : עושה השלום לפסח ושבעות‎ (Addition of the festivals of Pessaḥ and Shavuot)
  • ff. 173r-174r : סדר מוצא' שבת ומועדי' (Order for after Shabbat and festivals)‎
  • f. 174v : Blank page
  • ff. 175r-176r : ענין שבעות‎ (Subject of Shavuot), additions for the evening and morning prayers‎
  • ff. 176v-181r : תפלת מוסף‎ (Mussaf prayer for Shavuot)‎
  • ff. 181r-190v : שבחות שאומר' בפסח שבעות וסוכות‎ (Praises which we say on Pessaḥ, Shavuot, and Sukkot)‎
  • ff. 191r-224v : ענין ראש השנה‎ (Subject of Rosh ha-Shanah)
    • (ff. 191r-200v) : תפלת ערבית שחרית ומנחה לשבת לראש השנה‎ (Evening, morning, and afternoon prayers for Shabbat for Rosh ha-Shanah)‎
    • (f. 200v) : Blessing for the blowing of the Shofar, including drawn lengths of sounds (‎קריאת השופר‎)‎
    • (ff. 201r-214r) : ‎תפלת מוסף‎ (Prayer of Mussaf)‎
    • (ff. 214v-224v) : ‎וביום שני אומר'‏‎ (And on the Second day [of Rosh ha-Shanah] we say) (2nd Day prayers for Rosh ha-Shanah)‎
  • ff. 225r-263v : ‎ענין יום הכפורי'‏‎ (Subject of Yom Kippur)
    • (ff. 225r-228v) : Evening prayers before Yom Kippur
    • (ff. 229r-233r) : כל נדרי‎ (Kol Nidrei prayer)‎
    • (ff. 233r-238r) : תפלת ערבית שחרית ומנחה לשבת וצום כפור‎ (Evening, morning, and afternoon prayers for Shabbat and the fast of Kippur)‎
    • (ff. 238r-263v) : ‎תפלת מוסף‎ (Prayer of Mussaf)‎
  • ff. 264r/v : Blank pages
  • ff. 265r-299r : ענין סוכות‎ (Subject of Sukkot)‎
    • (ff. 265r-266v) : Addition for the morning prayer (‎שחרית לסוכות‎)‎
    • (ff. 267r-273r) : תפלת מוסף‎ (Prayer of Mussaf)‎
    • (ff. 273r-299r) : הושענות‎ (Hoshanot, liturgical poems for Sukkot)‎
  • ff. 299r-304v : ענין שמני עצר' (Subject of Shemini Atzeret)‎
    • (ff. 299r-300v) : בתפלת ערבית שחרית ומנחה‎ (In the evening, morning and afternoon prayers) (addition to be inserted into these prayers)
    • (ff. 300v-304v) : ‎תפלת מוסף‎ (Prayer of Mussaf)‎
Provenienz der Handschrift:
  • Hebrew Owners’ notes in the manuscript: ‎f. 1r: very faint illegible note in the top margin.‎
  • This manuscript was part of the collection of Moritz Heidenheim (1824-1898), a German Jewish scholar from Worms, who converted to Anglicanism. After several years studying in London, Heidenheim came to Zurich in 1864 and became an Anglican chaplain, where stayed until his death in 1898.
Erwerb der Handschrift: In 1899, the collection of 211 Hebrew manuscripts (189 paper and 22 parchment manuscripts) and 2587 printed books entered the Zentralbibliothek in Zurich. This collection encompasses a wide variety of subjects, including biblical, exegetical, halakhic, liturgical, grammatical, lexicographical, cabbalistic, astronomical and apologetical literature, and conveys above all, Moritz Heidenheim’s scholarly and scientific interests as a 19th century bibliophile (O. Franz-Klauser, 2006, pp.116, 241, 246).
Manuscript catalogues:
  • J. Prijs, Die hebraïschen Handschriften der Zentralbibliothek Zürich. Im Auftrag der Verwaltung der Zentralbibliothek beschrieben von Joseph Prijs (7 vols.), vol. 3, Nr. 96, pp. 176-177.‎
  • A. Schechter, Die hebraïschen Manuscripte der Zentralbibliothek zu Zürich (Abt. Heidenheim) von Abraham Schechter. Abgeschlossen am 15. September 1921, (Hebrew), pp. 145-146.
Printed catalogues and secondary literature:‎
  • O. Franz-Klauser, Ein Leben zwischen Judentum und Christentum. Moritz Heidenheim (1824-1898) (Zurich: Chronos Verlag, 2008).‎
  • J. Prijs, Die hebräischen Handschriften in der Schweiz: Katalog der hebräischen Handschriften in den Schweizer öffentlichen Bibliotheken … redigiert auf Grund der Beschreibungen von Joseph Prijs (Basel, Benei Beraq: Sefer Verlag, 2018), pp. 128-129.