David de Silva

Descended from a prominent European rabbinic family that settled in Jerusalem, David de Silva was orphaned at a young age. He received a good education but lived a life of deprivation. In 1705, he set out on a journey to Europe in order to publish his father’s books (to which he added introductions describing his travels) and improve his own material state. While in Europe, de Silva studied medicine. Upon returning to Jerusalem, he treated Jews, Muslims, and Christians, enabling him to live in relative comfort for some time. However, famine and oppression brought further hardships, and he later traveled to Europe again. De Silva’s comprehensive work, Peri ḥadash (New Fruit), which includes philosophical and medical topics, as well as impressions of his journeys and glimpses into contemporary life in Jerusalem, has survived in manuscript. One section, “Peri megadim” (Pleasant Fruit), concerns the medicinal properties of various materials and foods, according to Galenic medical theory.