16
votes
Can a woman write a megillah?
There is a long list of decisors who permit a woman to write a Megillah
R Eliezer Melamed, author of Peninei Halakha, (here, note 10) writes
The Aĥaronim debate whether a woman may write a Megilla.
...
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11
votes
Accepted
Were scrolls ever written on both sides?
The Talmud (Shabbat 79b) prescribes specific sides of the hide to be used for writing (depending which parts of the hide are being used) and the majority opinion (YD 271:3) is that writing on the ...
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10
votes
If we have full copies of the Torah in an unchanged form (Dead Sea Scrolls), why don’t we revert our Torah scrolls back?
Halakhah does not assume that anything older is necessarily more precise despite the principle yeridat hadorot (ירידת הדורות), and this is scientifically not reasonable either. Assume you write an ...
- 7,424
9
votes
Accepted
Has Paleo Hebrew (Ktav Ivri) Ever Been Found With Crowns?
In short, none have been found so far.
The earliest Ktav Ivri amulets found are the two Ketef Hinnom silver amulets from late First Temple days. A good description of them with pictures showing no ...
- 2,170
9
votes
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What was the material used to write the curses for the Sotah on?
The Rambam writes in Hilchot Sotah 3:8
Afterwards, a scroll of parchment from a kosher animal, like the
parchment used for a Torah scroll is brought.
R Eliyahu Touger explains "the Jerusalem ...
- 45.6k
9
votes
Thickening letters for tefillin and mezuzos
This is a known technique. It's generally considered invalid and called פנים חדשות. See Lishkat HaSofer 9:6:
ונ"ל פשוט דאם לאחר שהעבה איזה אות מצד זה גרדו מצד השני ולא נשאר רק הכתב החדש הוי שלא ...
- 96.9k
9
votes
If we have full copies of the Torah in an unchanged form (Dead Sea Scrolls), why don’t we revert our Torah scrolls back?
There's been extensive scholarship on this, especially by Professor Schiffman. The "Qumranites" -- the group to whom these scrolls belonged -- did not follow the mainstream "Pharisee&...
- 130k
8
votes
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Can one add in missing words above the line in a Torah scroll?
Shulchan Arukh YD 276:1
טעה ודילג תיבה או יותר -- יכול לתלותה בין השיטין אבל לא בריוח שבין דף לדף:
[If a scribe] erred and skipped a word or more -- he can hang it between the lines but not ...
- 96.9k
8
votes
What are the symbols in the margins of the Aleppo codex?
The marginal notes you are referring to are called the masorah, in particular the masorah parva (small or inner masorah). These mostly mark rare words or ketiv qerei pairs. The other two types are the ...
- 7,424
7
votes
Online Safrut Courses
I just saw your question and wanted to let you know there is an online safrut course starting on November 15th. All the information can be found here:
http://mastery.webyeshiva.org/safrut-...
- 81
7
votes
Accepted
What's the difference between קסת הסופר and מנחת שי?
Keset HaSofer, by R Shlomo Ganzfried, discusses the laws of writing as a Sofer STaM. Topics include: how to make Kosher parchment, shapes of the letters, intent when writing, what sorts of corrections ...
- 96.9k
7
votes
Could a Torah Scroll Be Writtin in Ktav Ivri (Paleo Hebrew)?
In Massechet Mezuzah 1:3, we read:
שנה אותיותיה או שנכתבה עברית הרי זו פסולה.
If you changed [a mezuzah]'s letters or it was written in k'tav ivri, it is pasul. [my transl.]
The same can be found in ...
- 9,757
7
votes
Accepted
Why is the final Heh in Ha'Shem's name different in K'thav Chabad/Alter-Rebbe?
Good eye! You're noticing a Kabbalistic practice called כתיבת השם בחילוק writing God's name by parts. I won't begin to pretend to understand it, but those who practice it write the different limbs of ...
- 96.9k
6
votes
What is the purpose of the "crowns" on top of the letters (tagin)?
In a responsum on the topic of the crowns (1:79 in the Machon Yerushalayim edition of Shu"t HaRambam) Rambam writes that the reason for the crowns is unknown.
ואין ידוע טעם לזה ואי אפשר לכוללם בכלל
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6
votes
What halachic sefarim do sofrim learn?
When I started studying hilchot safrut, I was told to use the Kesset haSofer (by R' Schlomo Ganzfried ע"ה) with R' Ya'akov Stern's Mishnat haSofer. It can be purchased here.
From others, I have ...
- 12.8k
6
votes
Accepted
What is the source for writing names of Haman's sons in a separate column?
The Talmud Yerushalmi (Megillah 3:7) says about the list that the word איש should be at the "head" of the column and ואת should be at the "end" of it. Some versions (see Masekhet Sofrim 13:6) also ...
- 96.9k
6
votes
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Why does one need to go to the mikvah before writing a letter in the Torah?
As @DoubleAA wrote in the comments, this is not halacha, but a minhag brought by some, e.g., from here #2
"Ritual immersion on a regular basis (not just because of the decree of Ezra) is fitting ...
- 45.6k
6
votes
Accepted
Elevated Ayin (ע) in Iyov 38:13 and 38:15
Talmud Sanhedrin 103b
אמר ר"ש בן לקיש מאי דכתיב (איוב לח, טו) וימנע מרשעים אורם וזרוע רמה תשבר מפני מה עי"ן של רשעים תלויה כיון שנעשה אדם רש מלמטה נעשה רש מלמעלה
ולא נכתביה כלל ר' יוחנן ור"א חד ...
- 96.9k
6
votes
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Tagin on letter Tet
Bnei Yissaschar, Kislev 2:
עוד כתב הרב הקדוש הנ"ל תקנו ל"ו נרות כנגד האור הראשון ששימש לאדה"ר ל"ו שעות כמשארז"ל בפסיקתא וכתב עוד שעל אות ט' של וירא אלקים את האור כי טו"ב יש על הט' ד' תגין להורות ד' ...
- 34k
6
votes
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Is there ever a rule not to place certain words on separate lines in a Sefer Torah?
Yes, that custom still exists. The most famous example is the toponym בית-אל.
The Arukh HaShulchan (YD 275:24) lists the following examples, though surely there are some variant customs out there:
...
- 96.9k
5
votes
Accepted
What is Sta"m ink made from?
See here where they the main ingredients as
Water, Oak Gall Nut, Gum Arabic, Soot, Logwood, Copper Sulfate or Iron
Sulfate. There are many recipes for this ink and many laws the Scribe
must ...
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5
votes
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Confusing Tes with Pei
Here are three ways this Gemara is understood in Rishonim.
The Yereim argues that the problem is if you add the green segment, then the non-blue parts make up a Pei, and that's a problem even though ...
- 96.9k
5
votes
If the signatures of the witnesses and names filled in on a kesuva fade is it still kosher?
Kollel Eretz Hemda (a very respected halacha kollel in Jerusalem) answers a similar question in their responsa collection Ask the Rabbi vol. 2 (#69, p. 150).
Their answer is that you should ask a rav ...
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5
votes
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Safrut in practice - Calculating Ma Tovu at the top of the column
Everyone nowadays uses a pre-printed layout of the whole Torah where whoever designed that PDF thought it through on the computer and made it work.
Historically, you could copy from a Torah scroll ...
- 96.9k
4
votes
Accepted
How are Sifrei Torah typically checked today?
Computers are used quite effectively for checking for errors in STa"M. Your understanding of how it works is basically correct. The scanned text is compared with a standard which is known to be kosher....
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4
votes
Can a woman write a megillah?
This question is not explicitly addressed by the Rishonim. However, the Gemara equates a number of the laws of Megillah with those of a Sefer Torah, deriving each law from a separate verse (see ...
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4
votes
Is there a ketivat ot for tefillin or mezuzot?
There is a distinct Mitzvah to write a Sefer Torah (specifically, mitzvah number 613). This can be accomplished by filling in a letter (as the Rambam in Mishneh Torah, Tefillin, Mezuzah and the Torah ...
- 6,753
4
votes
Safrut in practice - Calculating Ma Tovu at the top of the column
1 - As @DoubleAA writes in the comments on the question, Sofrim write from a Tikun nowadays. These Tikun Sofrim were arranged by expert sofrim to conform with many rules, not just the ב*"ה שמ&...
- 6,113
4
votes
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Can I see a list of the 18 Tikunei Sofrim (emendations of the scribes), with each described?
The following is a very incomplete answer because it has a list but not with each described. I hope somebody can post an answer with each one described.
There is an article here https://blogs....
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