Letter of Torah Novellae Handwritten, Signed and Stamped by Rabbi Yosef Rosen, "The Rogochover." Signed Autograph

Relatively lengthy halachic responsum dealing with the laws of spiritual purity, impurity, and related topics, by the gaon Rabbi Yosef Rosen, author of Tzofnat Paneach, more commonly known as "The Rogochover." The responsum is addressed to the gaon Rabbi Mordechai Chaskin, Av Beit Din of Krakinova. Dvinsk, 1906.

This responsum is written in his characteristic dense script, without margins. Unlike most of his halachic responsa which contain just a few words, mainly source references in which the answer to the specific inquiry can be found, in the letter before us, whether due to the sender's prominence or due to the importance of the matter, the Rogachover goes out of his way to write approximately 200 words (!) all in his hand.

Rabbi Yosef Rosen [1858-1936] was a wondrous figure, possibly even "one of a kind, " with his tremendous genius and his phenomenal and peerless memory, to the point of total mastery over all sections of the Torah, something considered at the time to be "superhuman, " especially before the computer age. Legend has it that he would write two different letters with his two hands, at the same time. Even the intellectuals of his time said of him that two Einsteins could be hewn from his brain. Rabbi Yosef Rosen was born in the town of Rogochov, by whose name he is known. He was a Chassid of Chaba"d-Kapust. He studied under the gaon Rabbi Yosef Dov Ber Soloveitchik, author of Beit HaLevi, in his youth. He served as Chassidic rabbi of Dvinsk, alongside Rabbi Meir Simchah HaKohen, author of Ohr Samayach. His Torah novellae were written in short comments only. Before WWII, with tremendous efforts, his daughter managed to copy his manuscripts and send them to America. Over the years, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Kasher published some of the Torah thoughts that were sent.

To the best of our knowledge, this responsum has never been published.

[1] post office postcard, stamped and postmarked, 14x9 cm. Entirely handwritten, signed and stamped by him. Fine condition.