General

Title

The Magnificent Parchment - London, British Library, MS Or. 6465 Scroll

Manuscript name

היריעה המפוארת - כתב יד הספריה הבריטית 6465

Summary

London, BL, MS Or. 6465 Scroll © The British Library Board is a well-preserved witness of the family of large manuscript rotuli ("ilanot") to which we have given the name "The Magnificent Parchment." It was copied by the Polish kabbalist David Darshan (ca. 1527–late sixteenth century) during his time in Modena in 1556. The original Magnificent Parchment was likely crafted ca. 1500 in northern Italy. This family of manuscripts is distinguished by its grand scale, its graphical richness, and its roughly 33,000-word anthological text. Unlike some luxury copies of the Magnificent Parchment that display rich colors and gold leaf, the Darshan copy was almost certainly made for the copyist's personal use. Unlike some of the commissioned luxury rotuli, however, Darshan was an erudite kabbalist and copied (and perhaps even corrected) the texts of the Magnificent Parchment with a precision that sets it apart from other witnesses.

Layout

David Darshan appears to be responsible for all texts and images

Support material

Parchment

Form

http://vocab.getty.edu/page/aat/300028629

Identifier

MS Or. 6465 Scroll

Alternative identifier

Repository

The British Library Board

Country

http://ontologi.es/place/GB-ENG

Settlement

London

Dimensions

Measure

3 leaves

Width

57.2 cm

Height

200.0 cm

Creation time