Officially starting today, a replica of the Sarajevo Hagada can be bought, together with a special edition of the scientific study on this important monument.
As highlighted by the National Museum, the publisher, the best-selling edition of Sarajevo Haggadas was being made by a team of experts for two years and a great help was given by the expert team and distinguished art historian from the University of Jerusalem, prof. Dr. Shalom Sabar.
The Haggadah , which means “telling” in Hebrew, is a written guide to the Passover seder, which commemorates the Israelites’ Exodus from Egypt. The Haggadah includes various prayers, blessings, rituals, fables, songs and information for how the seder should be performed. Although modern Haggadot (the plural of Haggadah) can vary widely, the tradition of reading a book to guide the seder dates back to the Middle Ages, and some of the elements that make up contemporary Haggadot were used 2,000 years ago.
Most Haggadot begin with instructions for the order of the seder (the word “seder” means “order” in Hebrew) and go on to include rituals like the blessings over the four cups of wine that will be consumed, the custom of washing one’s hands, and an explanation for various traditional items on the seder table including the seder plate, which contains the bitter herbs and other symbolic foods. There is usually a break in the seder for the meal and the Haggadah is picked up again before the seder is completed.
Haggadot usually include the 10 Plagues, the Four Questions — customarily read or sung by the youngest seder participant — and songs about liberation and freedom. “Dayenu” is one of the most recognizable songs in the Haggadah. It is more than 1,000 years old and thanks God for all of the miracles and gifts he has given to the Jewish people. The chorus “dayenu” translates to “it would have been enough for us.”
The scientific study, which comes with a copy of Hagada, will be available to buyers in Bosnian and English language, and soon, it will be printed in French, German, Spanish and Hebrew.
The Sarajevo Haggadah is an illuminated manuscript that contains the illustrated traditional text of the Passover Haggadah which accompanies the Passover Seder. It is one of the oldest Sephardic Haggadahs in the world, originating in Barcelona around 1350. The Haggadah is owned by the National Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina in Sarajevo. Its monetary value is undetermined, but a museum in Spain required that it be insured for $7 million before it could be transported to an exhibition there in 1992.
The Sarajevo Haggadah is handwritten on bleached calfskin and illuminated in copper and gold. It opens with 34 pages of illustrations of key scenes in the Bible from creation through the death of Moses. Its pages are stained with wine, evidence that it was used at many Passover Seders.
Sarajevo Haggadah and accompanying scientific studies can be purchased at the premises and online shop of BiH National Museum.
