Contract of David Oppenheim with the Prague Jewish Community
The Jewish Community of Prague
1702
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David Oppenheim (1664–1736) was the chief rabbi of Prague. Born in Worms, he was the son of a communal leader and nephew of Samuel Oppenheim (1630–1703), financier and war contractor to the Habsburg emperor, Leopold I. From 1689 to 1702, David Oppenheim served as the chief rabbi of Moravia, while based in Nikolsburg (present day Mikulov, Czech Republic). In 1701, he was named Nasi Erets Yisra’el and later rabbi of Jerusalem. This contract formalizes his assumption of the post of chief rabbi of Prague. From 1713, he also served as chief rabbi of Bohemia, a post he shared with his father-in-law Binyamin Wolf Spira-Wedeles until the latter’s death in 1715. Oppenheim wrote several rabbinic tracts and was a noted bibliophile. His large collection of books and manuscripts is now held at Oxford University’s Bodleian Library.
Credits
With permission of the Jewish Museum in Prague.
Published in: The Posen Library of Jewish Culture and Civilization, vol. 5.
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