❧ Description
Sephardic manuscript copied in North Africa in the sixteenth century (Sirat 1980), containing two works: the Sefer Pé’a of Moses ben Samuel Ibn Tibbon (fol. 10r-54v) — the only known copy in the world of this philosophical treatise — and the Sha’ar Kevod Hashem of Ephraïm Aln'kaoua (fol. 58r-78v), the only complete copy identified for this work. The current shelfmark MS. Opp. 241 corresponds to no. 939 in the Neubauer catalogue (item 2 for the Aln'kaoua piece); the concordance is confirmed by Judith Olszowy-Schlanger (EPHE, 2000) and Colette Sirat (DAAT no. 5, 1980). The Sha’ar Kevod Hashem — “The Gate of the Glory of God” — is one of the two major works of Ephraïm Aln'kaoua (c. 1359-1442), founder of the Jewish community of Tlemcen after the Castilian exodus of 1391; the treatise defends Maimonides's Guide for the Perplexed against the criticisms of Naḥmanides.
Provenance: 1 David Oppenheim collection (Prague, late 17th c.) 2 Bodleian Library, since 1829
Codicological notice — origin Maghreb; script: Maghrebi; leaves: 77 folios; old catalogues: Neubauer Catalogue 1886 · 939,2; editorial status: Partial edition available.
— Source: Mémoires des Manuscrits Juifs du Moyen-Âge Maghrébin (MMJMM / Collectif GMPL), https://mmjmm.org/corpus/catalogue/bodleian-neubauer-939-2; manuscript held at the Bodleian Library (Oxford).
