Solomon David Sassoon

Solomon David Sassoon (14 August 1915 – 27 May 1985) was an educator, Rabbi, philanthropist, fundraiser, and collector of Jewish manuscripts.

Biography

Early life

Solomon David Sassoon was born in August 1915 in London into the wealthy Sassoon family.^[1] His father was David Solomon Sassoon (1880–1942), a collector of Hebrew manuscripts whose father hailed from Baghdad.^[1] His paternal grandmother was Flora Sassoon.^[1] His paternal great-grandfather was Albert Abdullah David Sassoon (1818–1896), and his paternal great-great-grandfather was David Sassoon (1792–1864), a trader of cotton and opium who served as the treasurer of Baghdad between 1817 and 1829.^[1]

He was tutored in Talmud by Rabbi Eliyahu Eliezer Dessler.

Career

Sassoon made original contributions to linguistic analysis, philosophy, physiology and Biblical criticism. In 1953 and again in 1964, he declined requests to put his name forward as a candidate for the position of Sephardi Chief Rabbi of Israel.^[2] His varied interests and literary output were maintained until his death.

Death and legacy

Solomon David Sassoon built a library in Letchworth, England, to house his father's collections of Jewish manuscripts and incunabula. Some of these holdings were later auctioned by Sotheby's of London in Zurich and in New York, between 1975 and 1994, in order to satisfy the Sassoon estate's British tax obligations.^[3] The rest of this collection was transferred to the University of Toronto, in Canada.

Sassoon died in Jerusalem in May 1985. His son, Isaac S.D. Sassoon, is also a rabbi.

Bibliography

• Reality Revisited: A New Look at Computers and Minds, Physics and Evolution, Feldheim; 2nd Revised edition (1991), ISBN 0-87306-575-1
• Natan Hokhma liShlomo: A Collection of Torah Commentary, Essays on the Talmud and Assorted Philosophical Writings (1989)

References