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February 2, 2023

How, and Why, the Talmud Got Its Distinctive Look

The 500-year-old page layout reflects the text’s essence.

The Talmud has a famously distinctive page layout: the text itself resides in the center, and it is flanked by the medieval commentary of Rabbi Isaac ben Solomon (Rashi) on one side and that of his disciples (known as Tosafot) on the other, with various reference apparatuses in the margins, and then other commentaries in the outer margins. Introduced by Gentile printers of Judaica in 16th-century Italy, this format has been followed with minimal variation in almost every subsequent edition.

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February 2, 2023

  1. Will America Invite Israel to Join Its Multinational Coalitions?

    And should Israel want to join them?

  2. The Association for Jewish Studies Surrenders to Progressive Hatred for the Wrong Kinds of Jews

    Israel and the Orthodox become predictable targets.

  3. An Indiana Court’s Abortion Ruling Misconstrues Freedom of Religion

    Undermining religious liberty by overextending it.

  4. Remembering Ilan Ramon, Astronaut and Hero

    “I represent the state of Israel and the Jewish people.”

  5. How, and Why, the Talmud Got Its Distinctive Look

    The 500-year-old page layout reflects the text’s essence.