[Due to a dead digital camera, I haven't been posting over the past week. But, we're all repaired and back online now, so ENJOY!]

Finished the 6th yeria (columns 20 to 23) this evening.   All in all, everything went swimmingly except for one oddity.  I had to do some scraping and correcting in the first and fourth columns of the sheet.  For some reason, after scraping and sanding the in the first column, an odd, very dark splotches appeared…

The 22nd Column & Start of The Akeida (Binding of Isaac)

End of Parshas Vayera

The correction techniques I use rarely ever leave any marks (see here for more…).  After experimenting around with the klaf a bit and taking some discreet sample slices from the far edges, it seems that there is a darker layer of cross-pigmentation just under the writing surface.  I checked with a few colleagues, only one of whom had seen this sort of thing previously.  Apparently it only happens with extremely soft, weak parchment taken from near the flank section of the animal.

G-d Remembers Sarah

However, my parchment is “thickish” and very even.

I managed to remove most of the splotches by gentle sanding with various grades of sand and glasspaper.

Part of G-d's Promise to Avraham...

An interesting feature of this yeria is the appearance of the second small letter of the Torah, which is found in Bereishis (Genesis) 23:2 in the word “livkosah” – “And Avraham came to eulogize Sarah and to weep for her…”

Note the small "kaf" of the word "livkosah"

There are several different explainations as to why this word is written with a small “kaf” -

• The Ba’al ha-Turim explains that, because Sarah had died after a long, successful, life of righteousness Avraham’s grief at her funeral was somewhat reduced.

• The Rokeach cites a dispute in the Talmud (Bava Basra 16b) as to whether or not Avraham had a daughter.    In order to resolve the dispute the Rokeach explains that Avraham did have a daughter who, unfortunately, predeceased her parents.  When Avraham came to weep upon the death of Sarah, he also came to mourn the death of his daughter.  This is alluded to by the reduced “kaf” of “livkosa” – “to weep for her.”   If we read livkosa absent its reduced “kaf” (a valid method of interpreting words with reduced letters), the verse reads: “And Avraham came to eulogize upon Sarah and his daughter…“

• Additionally, the kaf may be reduced to draw attention something implied by the the letter itself.  When we spell out the name of the letter “kaf” in full, it is written: כף , which is the Hebrew word for the palm of the hand.    Rashi and the Metzudas Dovid to Yechezkel 21:19 both explain that striking one’s palms together or against one’s thigh (also referred to as a “kaf”) is a sign of mourning.

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