Sefer Hayashar or The Book of Jasher Refered to in Joshua and Second Samuel, Faithfully Translated from the Original Hebrew into English.

Samuel, Moses [1795-1860], translated by

Published by M. M. Noah & A. S. Gould, New York, N.Y., 1840

About this Item

Apparently the first U.S. edition. Preface by M. M. Noah. Foxing to front and back blanks. Slight foxing internally. Some damage to the very top and very bottom of the spine strip. This is a translation of the rabbinic Book of Yashar compiled from the Babylonian Talmud and other Jewish sources, and intermixed with Arabic legends and passages of the Bible. Three fourths of the book are devoted to the pre-Mosaic period, one fifth to the Mosaic period and only three pages to later history. The original edition appeared in Naples in 1552. A Latin version by Johann G. Abicht appeared in Leipzig, 1732, with the title: Dissertatio de libro recti. In 1750 the London printer Thomas Ilive issued an English translation of the work asserting that he had published the real "Book of Yashar" mentioned in the Bible. The present copy is apparently the first U.S. edition. The work also has significance for Rosicrucians and Masons. [4], xxiii, [1 blank], 267, [1 blank] pp. While the text is in English, there are two words in Hebrew in the title page and a few phrases in Hebrew in the translator's preface. The book has approbations by Isaac Nordheimer, H. V. Nathan, the rabbi of the synagogue in Kingston, Jamaica, Samuel H. Turner, and notices of the press: N.Y. Observer, New Yorker, Millennial Harbinger, Baptist Advocate, Albion, Philadelphia Gazette, Boston Post and the New York Mirror. These approbations have the heading: "Advertisement to the Second Edition" but this does not negate its being, probably the first UNITED STATES edition thus.

Seller Inventory # 005610

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Sefer Hayashar or The Book of Jasher Refered to in Joshua and Second Samuel, Faithfully Translated from the Original Hebrew into English.
• Publisher: M. M. Noah & A. S. Gould, New York, N.Y.
• Publication Date: 1840
• Binding: Hardcover
• Condition: Good
• Seller catalogs:
  • Judaica