Otzar HaChochmah veHaMadah - Sefer HaEven HaShoevet.

Zvi Hirsch ben Meir HaKohen Rabinowitz (1832-1889) was a Jewish-Russian intellectual, author and publicist. He is considered to be one of the pioneers of the Hebrew Scientific literature.
He was taught Talmud by his father, who was a rabbi but recognised the scientific talents of his son and allowed him to venture into sciences studies. In his early twenties Rabinowitz founded a technical school for Jewish boys in Dvinsk. He published several self-instructing scientific textbooks in Hebrew, in addition to two different Russian-language Jewish magazines during his lifetime. His works were published during the 'golden age' of the Tsarist Russia's Haskalah movement under Tsar Alexander II. In 1886 Rabinowitz was awarded an honorary citizenship by the government in recognition of his services to literature and the advancement of knowledge.

In 1852 he started writing his first scientific work 'Yesodey Chochmat HaTeva HaKlalit' that was intended to include six volumes, but due to the luck of funds only one volume was eventually published in 1867 - 'Sefer HaMenuchah veHaTnuah'. Almost a decade later Rabinowitz published a few additional scientific books, separate from his original magnum opus. 'Otzar HaChochmah veHaMadah' contained four volumes. Volume IV - 'Sefer HaEven HaShoevet' presented here explores magnetism and 'the unity of natural forces'. This volume was dedicated to the author's son.

For volume III please see stock no.122808.

First edition; 8vo, later cloth-backed wrappers, stained and rubbed; two titles in Hebrew, one in Russian and one in German, main text in Hebrew; many woodblock illustrations to text including portrait of the author, tears with loss to first of the two Hebrew titles and to pp. 37-38; a few ownership inscriptions, insert of nine notebook pages with handwritten notes in Yiddish in old black ink; [10], 224 pp.