Gabbai

GABBAI, family of Hebrew printers. ISAAC BEN SOLOMON (b. second half of 16^th century) lived in Leghorn and was the author of the Mishnah commentary Kaf Naḥat (appended to Mishnah, ed. Venice, 1614). Early in the 17^th century he worked as a typesetter for *Bragadini in Venice. His son JEDIDIAH acquired the Bragadini type and decorations and set up the first Hebrew press in *Leghorn, which was active there from 1650 to 1660, issuing a number of important works. With part of the equipment and staff of this press, Jedidiah's son ABRAHAM in 1657 established a printing house in Smyrna, which existed until 1675. Abraham himself moved to Constantinople in 1660, where he was a printer for a number of years. His corrector (proofreader) was SOLOMON BEN DAVID GABBAI – probably not of the same family – author of the kabbalistic work Me'irat Einayim (between 1660 and 1665) and a theological work Ta'alumot Ḥokhmah (Bodleian Library, Ms. Opp. 602).