klaf

Klaf or Qelaf () is the designation given a particular piece of skin. The Talmudic definition includes both the form of the skin and the way it is processed, in particular, that it must be tanned. Since the innovative ruling of ''Rabbeinu Tam'' (12th century Tosafist) it is primarily used to refer to parchment or vellum. It is one of the materials upon which a writes certain Jewish liturgical and ritual documents.

Description and rules

is a specially prepared, tanned, split skin of a kosher animalgoat, cattle, or deer. Rabbinic literature addresses three forms of tanned skin: , consisting of the full, unsplit hide; and and , which are the split halves of the full hide. The rabbinic scholars are divided upon which is the inner and which is the outer of the two halves. Maimonides is of the opinion that was the inner layer and that was the outer layer.
The "Shulchan Aruch" rules in the reverse that was the outer layer and that was the inner layer.

There are halachic rules for the use of each of the three types of skin.Rabbi Moshe ben Maimon ("Maimonides")
"Tefillin, Mezuzah and Sefer Torah"
- Chapter One, translated by Eliyahu Touger, on Chabad.org. Accessed 9 March 2024. According to Maimonides, Torah scrolls must be written on ''g'vil'' only on the side on which the hair had grown, and never on ''duchsustos'' (understood as the half-skin from the flesh side). Phylacteries, if written on ''k'laf'', must be written on the flesh side. A mezuzah, when written on ''duchsustos'', must be written on the hair side. It is unacceptable to write on ''k'laf'' on the hair side or on the split skin (either ''g'vil'' or ''duchsustos'') on the flesh side.

Preparation

The legally required method of cleaning and preparing has been altered over the centuries. During Talmudic times, salt water and barley (or flours) were sprinkled on the skins which were then soaked in the juice of ( gall nuts, or oak apples, and other tannins). Nowadays, most processors dip the skins in clear water for two days and then soak them in limewater for nine days to remove the hair. When it is a hairless surface, the scribe stretches it on a wooden drying frame and scrapes it until it is dry. Creases are ironed out with presses. Then it is sanded until it becomes a flat, smooth sheet fit for writing. The reasons for the change in this process are lengthy and controversial. Today, a few Jewish scribes still prepare in precise accordance with the Jewish Law.

Some parchment (usually poor quality) is smeared with ''log'', a chalky substance, to make it whiter. Occasionally this is only done on the reverse. Some scribes object to the use of ''log'' as it forms a barrier between the ink and the parchment.

Uses

In Talmudic times was primarily used for and at times . Since the 9th or 10th centuries it has become more widespread to write on ; however, even today, there are still groups who continue to adhere to the ancient prescription described in the Talmud, and continue to write on (full-grain leather).

Rabbi Abraham ben Isaac of Narbonne, in his day (early 12th-century), wrote the following account in his Questions & Responsa:

Our Torah scroll, even though it is not made in accordance with the halakha, since it is written upon ''klaf'' called n Arabic''req'' (= parchment), which is neither treated with arleyflour nor tanned with tannins, they (i.e. the Jewish community at large) have already relied upon its use owing to the extenuating circumstances, for 'it is a time for God to act, o as to avoidtheir cancelling of Your Divine Law.' They are bligated tostand-up before it, and observe concerning it the sanctity prescribed for the Book of the Law (Torah), and it is forbidden to hold-on to it without the intermediate handkerchiefs.

Intent

The parchment must be prepared "for the sake of use for the Divine act" and the processor must declare what he is preparing it for, as one cannot use destined for a lesser holiness (). Specifically, the tanning process must be done with the explicit intent of use for the holiness of Torah, tefillin, or a mezuzah. The tanner does this by uttering at the outset of the tanning process "Lshem kedushas sefer Torah, tefillin u'mezuzah" — "For the sake of the sanctity of a Torah scroll, tefillin, or mezuzah.", e.g. a , or for , or a , which are of weighty holiness (). If necessary, the scribe should state that he is preparing for the sake of a but that he may change his mind if he wishes. Some Rabbinic scholars say that a non-Jew may prepare it; however, a Jew must stand over him, directing him in his work and stating verbally that the preparation is for the sake of heaven.

Current production

Today there is a large amount of processed under rabbinical supervision, and the variety, quality, and quantity are increasing.

See also

* Ktav Stam
* Kulmus
* Leather in Judaism

References

External links

Hebrewbooks.org: The Tefillin Manual

{{Authority control

Hebrew words and phrases in Jewish law
Jewish law and rituals
Leather in Judaism
Writing media