Chidushim of the Ramban, Baba Batra, Prague 1729 – A copy belonging to the renowned Rabbi Chaim Tzvi Menahemayer and signed by prominent rabbis of the Austria family.
The Chidushim of the Ramban on Baba Batra was printed in Prague in the year 1729. On the flyleaf of this volume are inscriptions attributing ownership of the book to the renowned Rabbi Chaim Tzvi Menahemayer, the author of Ein HaBedulach, during his time as the rabbi of the town of Schatteldorf. The book contains signatures that likely belong to his students: Chaim Be’erel, Yisrael… Blum.
Additional signatures include:
David Baskowitz (father-in-law of the author of Seder Mishnah),
Yaakov Tzvi Austria (a member of the Beit Din of Oiben Yeshan during the time of the Gaon Rabbi Moshe Minz, the Maharam Minz, who passed away in 1807),
David HaKatan Israel (likely the student of Rabbi Moshe Blum of Siksa),
Chaim B"B Naftali of Offenheim (a town near Ohrdruf),
Other ownership inscriptions.
About the key figures:
Rabbi Yaakov Tzvi Austria (d. 1807) was a member of the prominent Beit Din in Oeben Yeshan from 1770, during the tenure of Rabbi Moshe Minz, the Maharam Minz. He was the son-in-law of Rabbi Meir Leib Austria, Av Beit Din of Kraly.
Rabbi David Baskowitz lived in Oeben Yeshan and was a supporter of the city. He was the grandson of Rabbi Leib, the son-in-law of the Tzemach Tzedek, and had prominent Chassidic connections. His descendants included notable rabbis like Rabbi Wolf Baskowitz, the son of the Machatzit HaShekel, and Rabbi Benjamin Wolf Rapaport, the Av Beit Din of Papa.
Rabbi Chaim Tzvi Menahemayer (1814-1886) was a leading rabbi in Hungary. He was born in Pisztian and studied under prominent rabbis like Rabbi Yaakov Kapel Altinkunstadt and Rabbi Benjamin Zev Lev. At a young age, he was accepted into the Pressburg yeshiva, where he gained renown for his intellectual prowess. He became a close disciple of Rabbi Moshe Sofer, the Chatam Sofer, and was known for his sharp intellect. The Chatam Sofer once remarked about him: "Are you not ashamed, my senior students, when this young boy, who has not yet reached bar mitzvah age, is more profound in his learning than you?" Rabbi Chaim Tzvi served as the Av Beit Din of Schatteldorf and later Verboi, where he founded a prominent yeshiva. In 1871, he became the rabbi of Ungvar, succeeding the Maharam Ash. Though he was part of the Ashkenazic rabbinate, he was well-accepted among Chassidic leaders, and many Chassidic greats from Hungary were his disciples. His books include Shu"t Ein HaBedulach.
