Printed Aleph-Bet Chart – Venice, 1728 – Rare Chart

Printed Aleph-Bet Chart – Venice, 1728 – Rare Chart

Printed Aleph-Bet chart, with an abridged Birkat HaMazon, other blessings, Shema and several other prayer texts. Venice: Benjamin son of Aaron Polacco for Bragadin, [1728].
Chart for the instruction of Hebrew to children. The upper part of the leaf shows the letters of the Hebrew alphabet with various vowel points. The alphabet is flanked on the right by the first paragraph of Shema, kedushah and the morning blessings; and on the left by an abridged version of Birkat HaMazon and other blessings. The chart also features several Psalms and the bedtime service, with the Hashkivenu blessing and Psalm 91 (starting with Psalms 90:17 – Viyhi Noam).
The center of the leaf is occupied by a fine illustration of a class of students. Several students are seen studying by a table, with a winged figure hovering over them and showering them with treats. Near them is a teacher brandishing a whip, ready to hit a disobedient student.
Imprint at the foot of the leaf, including the name of the printers, the place – Venice, and the year 1728. Such charts were printed in Italy from the mid-17th century until the 19th century. Most of the charts were printed in a similar format, with the Aleph-Bet chart in the center and accompanying texts (with typographic variations). The illustration at the center of this leaf also appears in all other charts, with minor variations in the details (in earlier charts the illustration is a woodcut, while in later ones it is engraved).
Rare chart.
The present chart is listed in the Bibliography of the Hebrew Book based on a photocopy of the copy in the JTS library, New York.
For details about other Aleph-Bet charts printed in Italy, and about the variations between the illustrations, see: Italian Alphabet Charts, by Y. Yudlov, Kiryat Sefer, 62, 1988-1989, pp. 930-932.

43.5X34 cm. Good-fair condition. Stains. Folding marks. Minor open tears to folds, affecting text, repaired with paper (with handwritten replacement of a few characters). Handwritten inscription on verso.

Exhibition: Childhood, Moscow, The Jewish Museum and Tolerance Center, 2021.
Provenance: The Gross Family Collection, Tel Aviv, 128.011.023.