I rotated the image so you can see, but click to enlarge and see it with the Hebrew part the right way.
Monday, February 20, 2012
Baba Sali's signature
I came across this interesting item on auction. It a sefer which includes a signature by its apparent owner, the Kabbalist Baba Sali. As you can see, part of his signature is in Latin letters, what looks to me Spanish influenced, although given the geography it is probably French-ish; Ysrail Abiks[help me out here]. It also says "Erfoud, Boudnib" and "Erfoud, Morocco." Interesting.
I rotated the image so you can see, but click to enlarge and see it with the Hebrew part the right way.
I rotated the image so you can see, but click to enlarge and see it with the Hebrew part the right way.
The "Abiks" thing is most likely some form of "Abihasira."
ReplyDeleteI know what it is, I just couldn't make out all the letters to give a proper transcription.
ReplyDeleteis that a k or an h with a bent line? (graphologists would have a field day with that). if it is an h then you have abihs(era)
ReplyDeleteIt looks like "Abihssir" with the final "a" omitted because of lack of space.
ReplyDeleteThe cities mentioned are Arfoud And Budniv. Budniv is the town where the Abuhatsera Moved, after Rabbi David Abuhatesra ws murdered in Rissani. Budbiv is in the TAfilalt region in south western Morocco.
ReplyDeleteThere was no Spanish influence in these regions, they were under French Rule though. The Algerian border was a short Drive away also under heavy French influence.
I suspect the signature not to be authentic though.
Why do you suspect it to be inauthentic? The ink certainly looks old.
ReplyDeleteAs for Spanish, I meant because of the orthography. I'm not sure where you'd get "Ysrail" from French.
I have seen many signatures of Baba Sali and this one does not conform. I saw this book in person as well. Though it is possible that is a variation from his early years.
ReplyDeleteThe Ysrail might be a transliteration error from Arabic or Hebrew where there is no letter to represent the vowel I. The Abuhatsera family though def. did not speak Spanish, nor was the community with any contact with the Spanish Moroccan communities far to the north.
Fair enough - but the auction did allow that it may not be his. What I would say though is that I am almost certain it's not a fake. Maybe it's someone else by that name, but that sure looks like it's many decades old. No one would have forged his signature 60 or 70 years ago.
ReplyDeleteYou are right, the signature does look old, but today, with all the advances in technology, it is easily done. As we speak, 18th century sigantures are being produced in Boro Park and Williamsburg. It is very unfortunate, but I have learned the hard way, that this is the case.
ReplyDeleteWithout having to resort to dishonest people, an extremely good paper restorer and binder, can get you a facsimile of say a missing title page to be close enough to perfect that it can easily pass for the real thing. It is rarely done, as the cost is currently quite high, but with very expensive books and sigantures, it can be done.
A decade ago, many people got fooled into a Guadalajara Haggadah which turned out to be a fake, and he nearly got away with it.
p.s. I know the family details quite well, and am almost certain there was no one else ever by that name in Budniv. Only 200 families lived in the town and I am pretty sure there was no other Abuhatsera by that name.
ReplyDeleteI know it can be done, but it's hard to do. For something as underwhelming as this (his signature on a sefer printed in the 1930s? Really?) I just don't see the point. Also, the signature is such a hiddush (at least to me) that I have a hard time believing that a forger would have the guts to do it, rather than copying known signature of Baba Sali.
ReplyDeleteMore likely is that it is authentic, or it is a lucky coincidence and it's another man with the same name. As you yourself doubt that it is another man, doesn't the likelier conclusion suggest that it is indeed him?
As for the Guadalajara Haggadah, I remember that story. I wouldn't mind seeing it, as I wonder if I could have detected it. I don't have tons of experience with antique books, but I do have enough that I think it would be interesting to see a fake like that up close.
I clicked your link - although I don't recall if I've ever bought anything from you, I've long enjoyed browsing your offerings. Great stuff!
ReplyDeleteThank you, appreciated
ReplyDeleteI did some more research and asked a friend who grew up in Budniv, he says there was one other Israel Abuhasera distantly related, that lived in Budniv but not In Arfud ever, rather in Midalt. Thsi fellow lived in Budniv for 40 years and as far as he knows, the name does not match any known person. This fellow said as well, that is close to impossible that the Baba Sali signed in the Latin Alphabet. Who actually signed it, I have no idea, but almost certainly not the Baba Sali.
ReplyDelete