Seder VeKaroth Imo HaBerith.

(CIRCUMCISION)

(England?)

1868

Hebrew manuscript on vellum. Composed by Ze’ev ben Eliezer HaMohel in a neat square script. Parchment lettering piece mounted on front cover bearing the name W.L. Phillips and the date 1868.

This miniature manuscript was written for the express purpose of fulfilling an uncommon, ancient Aschkenazic minhag that applied specifically during the morning prayer service preceding a circumcision, where the section of Pesukei d’Zimrah which immediately precedes the Shirah, beginning with the words “VeKaroth Imo HaBerith,” are recited by the Mohel and the Sandak responsively, while the congregation reads them silently. A variation on this tradition, as indicated in the present manuscript, calls for the Mohel to recite the first half of each verse aloud and the congregation replies with the concluding portion of the verse. Liturgical commentators have attached multiple layers of significance to this intriguing custom.