Golden Haggadah (The Plagues of Egypt, Scenes of Liberation, and Preparation for Passover)



Golden Haggadah (The Plagues of Egypt, Scenes of Liberation, and Preparation for Passover). Late medieval Spain. c. 1320 C.E. Illuminated manuscript (pigments and gold leaf on vellum).
  • FOUR PLAGUES
  • DOMESTIC KILLED BY PESTS; ANIMALS INVADE THE CITY; FROGS OVERRUN THE LAND
  • CONVINCED EGYPTIAN PHARAOHS TO FREE THE JEWS
    SURVIVAL FROM THE ANGEL OF DEATH ENSURED; MOST LUXURIOUS BOOKS EVER
    CREATED; ILLUMINATED MEDIEVAL MANUSCRIPT  
  • HAGGADAH MEANS NARRATION IN HEBREW; MOST LAVISHLY DECORATED; 56 MINIATURES FOUND WITHIN THE MANUSCRIPT; EACH PAINTED W/ A GOLDEN LEAF BACKGROUND; USED FOR CEREMONIAL PURPOSES; EDUCATIONAL RATHER THAN RELIGIOUS USE
  • SIMILAR TO CHRISTIAN GOTHIC MANUSCRIPT; ARCHITECTURAL DETAILS, PATTERNED BACKGROUNDS
  • STYLISTICALLY AN EXAMPLE OF JEWISH AND CHRISTIAN ARTS; SPAIN COMBINED JEWISH, CHRISTIAN AND MUSLIM STYLES 
  • HAGGADAH STANDS AS A TESTAMENT OF THE IMPACT AND SIGNIFICANCE OF JEWISH CULTURE IN SPAIN
  • it is one of the most luxurious examples of a medieval illuminated manuscript, regardless of use or patronage. So although the Golden Hagaddah has a practical purpose, it is also a fine work of art used to signal the wealth of its owners.
  • A hagaddah usually includes the prayers and readings said during the meal and sometimes contained images that could have served as a sort of pictorial aid to envision the history of Passover around the table. In fact, the word "haggadah" actually means "narration" in Hebrew.
  • The Golden Haggadah is one of the most lavishly decorated medieval Haggadot, containing 56 miniatures (small paintings) found within the manuscript. The reason it is called the "Golden" Haggadah is clear—each miniature is decorated with a brilliant gold-leaf background. As such, this manuscript would have been quite expensive to produce and was certainly owned by a wealthy Jewish family.
  • CEREMONIAL PURPOSE; intended to showcase the prosperity of this family living near Barcelona in the early fourteenth century.
  • haggadot were often seen as education rather than religious and therefore exempt from this rule.
  • The dominant style of Christian art in Europe clearly influenced the artists of this manuscript.
  • So the Golden Haggadah is both stylistically an example of Jewish art and Gothic art.
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