Die Haggadah von Sarajevo. Eine Spanisch-Juedische Bilderhandschrift des Mittelalters
AUCTION 37 |
Tuesday, June 26th,
2007 at 1:00
Fine Judaica: Printed Books, Manuscripts, Autograph Letters, Graphic & Ceremonial Art
Lot 83
(HAGADAH)
Die Haggadah von Sarajevo. Eine Spanisch-Juedische Bilderhandschrift des Mittelalters
Vienna: A. Holzhausen 1898
Est: $2,000 - $3,000
The Sarajevo Hagadah is the oldest survivng Sephardic Haggadah in the world, originating in Barcelona around 1350.
The present facsimile contains considerable information on illuminated Hagadah manuscripts. Indeed, the publication of Mueller and Schlosser’s outstanding study of this extraordinarily rich manuscript “for the first time focused attention on this expression of art among the Jews.” A. Marx, Jewish Quaerterly Review - New Series (1928) Vol. XIX. Also contains an important article by Prof. David Kaufmann, "Zur Geschichteder Judischen Handschriftenillustration" (On the History of Jewish Manuscript Illustration).
Apparantly, the original Sarajevo Hagadah was purchased by the Sarajevo National Museum (presently known as National Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina) when, in 1894, a school-aged child of the city’s Sephardi Community brought the manuscript to show his school-teacher, hoping to sell it soon after his father had died, leaving the family destitute.