A Haggadah is the script for the seder ritual on the first nights of Passover. The word means “telling,” and the seder is a ritual for the telling of the Passover story—the Exodus from Egypt—in a particular rabbinic fashion. 

This Haggadah, produced in Italy by the scribe and artist Joel ben Simeon in 1454, is an exceptional sample of a decorated Haggadah manuscript. Its fine decorations and illustrations are a testament to the wealth of its patron and his concern for beautifying the tradition.  

Outstanding on this page (which includes one of the seder’s final songs) is the “wild” or “hairy” man blowing his horn. Given the placement of this figure near the end of the Haggadah, this may well be an image of the Prophet Elijah, who is described as hairy in the biblical text (II Kings 1:8). Elijah, of course, will announce the coming of the Messiah (on the facing page, we read the formula, “next year in Jerusalem!”).