ר׳ אברהם די בוטון

ר׳ אברהם בן משה די בוטון (c.1545–c.1605), often called the לחם משנה, was an Ottoman Sephardi halakhist and one of the most enduring commentators on משנה תורה. Born into a Salonikan rabbinic family, he studied in the yeshiva of ר׳ שמואל די מדינה alongside ר׳ מרדכי קלעי. He later served the Apulian congregation of Salonika as rabbi and led a Talmudic academy. His commentary לחם משנה traces difficult rulings of ר׳ משה בן מימון to their Talmudic sources, compares them with later authorities, and frequently clarifies points left unresolved by כסף משנה. After כסף משנה appeared in 1575, he revised his treatment to distinguish his own observations and record agreement or disagreement. His responsa, gathered as לחם רב, illuminate the legal and commercial life of the Sephardi diaspora. Evidence places him chiefly in Salonika, with late visits or residence reported in the Land of Israel and Constantinople. He died during a plague sometime between 1603 and 1609. לחם משנה was first printed at Venice in 1604 and became a standard page-side commentary in editions of משנה תורה.