M Gaster

The Chronicles Of Jerahmeel M Gaster

This is Moses Gaster's translation of the Chronicles of Jerahmeel. This Jerahmeel has since been identified as Jerahmeel ben Solomon, thought to have flourished in Italy around 1150. The book is a collection of extended Biblical events, mixed with Roman history, lists of geographical names, and Patriarchial genealogies. Gaster Chronicles were compiled from Hebrew sources, both ancient and medieval. The text runs from the void before Creation, through the Deuterocanonical Apocrypha. This book abounds with astounding folklore. The actual compiler of the chronicles identifies himself as Eleasar ben Asher the Levite who, according to Gaster, lived in the Rhineland in the 14th century. The most recent events depicted in the Chronicles refer to the time of the Crusades, but the entire rest of it pertains to the period before AD 70. Among the early sources quoted in the work is the 1st century Rabbi Eliezer ben Hyrcanus.