Seder Hagadah shel Pesaḥ

Yaʻaḳov ben Yehuda Leyb, Sofer (Scribe)

Seder Hagadah shel Pesaḥ

Manuscript on vellum

Hamburg, 1731

The exquisite illustrated manuscript of the Hamburg Haggadah (1731) takes its name from its place of production. It is an artistic creation of the famous 18th-century scribe Yaʻaḳov ben Yehuda Leyb Sofer of Berlin and was most likely commissioned by a local wealthy Jewish family. It is estimated that this scribe produced only 40 manuscripts during his lifetime, mostly between  1717–40, when the production of printed books was already widespread. This fact serves to emphasize the utmost beauty and value of his calligraphy, working primarily in the German cities of Hamburg and Altona. 

This page displays a sequence of 13 images of traditional ritual acts for the Passover meal (signs of the seder). Arranged in two columns, they begin on the upper right side, continue on the left, and end with the large woodcut at the bottom. On this page, the artist followed the illustrative tradition that first appeared in the printed Haggadah that was published in Venice by Bragadin in 1629, and since then became a popular component of many haggadot. Here, the artist’s artistic rendition varies slightly. Differences are most apparent in the details of costumes and poses of the figures in the images, probably reflecting the fashion of the time.