Jerusalem, NLI, Ms. Heb. 4=9795Poppers Ilan

Jerusalem, NLI, Ms. Heb. 4=9795Poppers Ilan

Shelfmark:
Ms. Heb. 9795=4, Recto
The National Library of Israel, Jerusalem, Israel
Creator:
Meir Poppers
Date of Creation:
ca. 1700
Dimensions:
1520 × 560 cm
Material:
parchment
Form:
rotulus
Main Language:
Rabbinic Hebrew
Former Shelfmark:
Tel Aviv, GFC, Ms. 028.012.015
About the MS:
This ilan, copied around 1700 by a scribe of German or Bohemian origin, is one of only two known copies that exclusively preserve Meir Poppers’ original ilan. The second, copied by Behr Eibeschütz Perlhefter (ca. 1650–ca. 1713), is held in the Magnes Collection of Jewish Art and Life at the University of California (Berkeley, Magnes Collection, acc. no. 67.1.11.3). The early Hammerschlag ilan (Jerusalem, NLI, Ms. Heb. 4=9794) might be considered a third, were it not for its modest modifications. The ilan features a symmetrical, tabular design that highlights the right, left, and center of kabbalistic cosmology. Its simple, unornamented style reflects the ilan’s original pedagogical purpose, as described by Poppers himself.
Type:
Poppers , Lurianic
Research Literature:
  • J. H. Chajes, The Kabbalistic Tree (University Park, PA: Penn State University Press, 2022), 140–144, 349.
NLI Record:
NLI Record