Gemara Clarity

Bava Kamma 99a

בבא קמא צ״ט ע״א

Learn Bava Kamma 99a step by step: Aramaic beside English, every question, answer and proof colour-coded.

Open Bava Kamma 99a in Gemara Clarity

Topic

Does an אומן own the שבח he adds to an item? רב אסי's rule tested against the dyer משנה, בל תלין, and the betrothal-with-jewelry ברייתא

Overview

Just before this, רב אסי ruled that an אומן קונה בשבח כלי: a craftsman gets ownership rights in the added value he puts into an item. The גמרא first tries to prove this from the משנה about a dyer whose cauldron burned the wool. שמואל pushes the proof away, and the גמרא concludes he was only deflecting it, not arguing with רב אסי. Next the גמרא tries a ברייתא that applies בל תלין to a craftsman's pay. It answers that the ברייתא is about a worker paid per tread, who is a plain hired worker. Along the way, the גמרא shows that רב ששת's ruling on a contractor fits with רב אסי, because רב ששת means a letter carrier who improves nothing. Finally, the גמרא asks whether רבי מאיר and the חכמים argue about רב אסי's rule in a case of betrothal with jewelry. It gives two other explanations of their argument, one about when a wage is owed and one about betrothing with a loan. So the ברייתא does not prove that the rule is argued about by תנאים.

Opening lines

וְהִקְדִּיחוֹ יוֹרָה –

and the cauldron burned it –

נוֹתֵן לוֹ דְּמֵי צַמְרוֹ.

he gives him the value of his wool.

דְּמֵי צַמְרוֹ – אִין,

The value of his wool – yes,

דְּמֵי צַמְרוֹ וְשִׁבְחוֹ – לָא;

the value of his wool and its improvement – no;

The steps (23)

  1. ProofTrying to prove רב אסי's rule from the burned-wool משנה
  2. Rejectionשמואל: the wool burned right away, before any improvement
  3. ChallengeDoes שמואל disagree with רב אסי?
  4. ResolutionAnother reading: the owner supplied both the wool and the dyes
  5. ChallengeThen the משנה should have mentioned the dyes too
  6. Conclusionשמואל was only pushing off the proof
  7. ProofA new proof from the garment given to a craftsman
  8. ChallengeIf the craftsman owned the improvement, there would be no wage to delay
  9. ResolutionThe garment in the ברייתא gets no real improvement
  10. ChallengeSoftening the garment is itself an improvement
  11. ResolutionHe was paid per tread, so he is a plain hired worker
  12. ProofThe original reading would have supported רב ששת
  13. ChallengeDoes רב ששת argue with רב אסי?
  14. Resolutionרב ששת means someone delivering a letter
  15. ProofSuggesting that רב אסי's idea is a dispute of תנאים
  16. QuestionWhat does 'money' mean?
  17. RejectionIt can't mean the jewelry itself
  18. ResponseIt must mean other money
  19. StatementTwo assumptions behind the proof
  20. ProofSo the dispute must be about the craftsman owning the improvement
  21. RejectionNo, they argue about when a wage is owed
  22. ResolutionEach side's view on when the wage is owed
  23. ResolutionA second explanation: the argument is about betrothing with a loan