Obj. ID: 2115
Hebrew Illuminated Manuscripts  Munich Ashkenazi Mahzor, Franconia?, late 13th century

This Munich Mahzor is written in a large format in two volumes and includes the service for the Special Sabbaths and festivals for the whole year (except for the 9th Av and hoshanot). It also contains three of the Five Scrolls for readings on the festival days of Passover (Song of Songs), Shavuot (Ruth) and Sukkot (Ecclesiastes). The other two scrolls for Purim (Esther) and 9th Av (Lamentations) are not included here. The Mahzor was probably intended for a cantor in the synagogue and therefore includes mainly piyyutim and some abbreviated versions of the statutory prayers.

The prayers mainly follow the western Ashkenazi rite, for example in the version of avinu malkenu (II:10-11; 44v-45; 73-73v; 120-120v; 160v-161v; Goldschmidt 1970, I, pp. 131-2), and the inclusion of the Aramaic piyyut akdamut millin for Shavuot (Fraenkel 2000, p. 69).

On the other hand, some texts follow the eastern Ashkenaz rite, such as והחיות ישוררו (II:3, 32, 168v, 190) recited at New Year, Day of Atonement, Sukkot and Shemini Azeret, rather than the western Ashkenazi version of והאופנים וחיות הקודש (Goldschmidt 1970, I, p. 53; Goldschmidt-Fraenkel 1981, p. 367). This western version was added in the margin by a later hand on II:3 in semi-cursive script.

Texts usually appearing in medieval Ashkenazi mahzorim of this period are not included here: the ofan כבודו יתרומם ויתנשא for the Special Sabbaths, and שיר הכבוד ושיר הייחוד commonly recited in the Ashkenazi communities from the 13th century at the end of the evening prayer (Goldschmidt 1970, II, p. כט). The text of our two-volume Mahzor was divided equally between Scribes A (16 quires) and B (15 quires). The latter, however, predominated as illuminator, since he decorated his own text (e.g. II:30, 43, 44) as well as that copied by Scribe A (e.g. I:23, 52, 124; II:152v, 161v, 178). The decoration in our Mahzor is executed in brown, red and blue ink.

The style, motifs and technique of the decoration by both scribes are close to the scribal art of the Ashkenazi manuscripts produced from the last quarter of the 13th century to the first half of the 14th century in Franconia and the neighboring regions of south Germany. Some codicological features in our Mahzor, such as the ruling by stylus and barely unnoticeable pricking of the inner margins are typical of manuscripts produced before 1300 (Beit-Arié 1981, p. 84), suggesting this date for our Mahzor.

The dominant elements of the decoration program in our Mahzor are the large and small built-up initial words surrounded by wriggle work, a common feature in Ashkenazi manuscripts of this period. However, the inclusion of specific motifs into the wriggle work by Scribe B, such as human and animal heads, dragons and foliage extensions (e.g. figs. 1, 3, 5), is less widespread and appears in only a few Ashkenazi manuscripts, such as in the Worms Mahzor (fig. 2) and another Mahzor from Franconia of the first quarter of 14th century (fig. 4), where the wriggle work ends in grotesque heads; or in the Abraham's Ashkenazi Mahzor of the 13th-14th century, probably also from Franconia, in which grotesques are integrated into acanthus leaves (fig. 6). A special feature in our Mahzor (I:23 - fig. 7; II:32) and in the Worms Mahzor are the pen-drawn animals enclosed within the letters (fig. 8).  

Fig. 1: Inhabited initial word Munich, BSB Cod. Hebr. 4, II:53v	Fig. 2: Inhabited initial word Worms Mahzor, Würzburg 1272 Jerusalm, NLI Heb. 40781/1, fol. 11 (Beit-Arié, facsimile 1985) (Cf. Munich, BSB Cod. Hebr. 5,  I:84, fig. 3)
Fig. 3: Inhabited initial word Munich, BSB Cod. Hebr. 4, II:43 (Cf. Munich, BSB Cod. Hebr. 5, I:184, fig. 4)	Fig. 4: Inhabited initial word Dragon’s Head Mahzor Franconia (?), first quarter of the 14th century London, BL Or. 42, fol. 10v (Jerusalem, CJA Documentation)
Fig. 5: Inhabited initial word Munich, BSB Cod. Hebr. 4, II:44	Fig. 6: Inhabited initial word Abraham's Ashkenazi Mahzor Franconia (?), 13th-14th century Modena, Estense Alpha. W. 8.5 (Or. 81), fol. 61v (Jerusalem, CJA Documentation)
Fig. 7: Inhabited initial word Munich, BSB Cod. Hebr. 4, I:23	Fig. 8: Inhabited initial word Worms Mahzor, Würzburg 1272 Jerusalem, NLI Heb. 40781, 1:66 (Beit-Arié, facsimile 1985)

Spared-ground inhabited letters are another type of decoration in our Mahzor (fig. 9).This type, by Scribe B, appears frequently in Ashkenazi manuscripts of the period, for example the David Siddur of 1308 from Franconia (fig. 10).

Indeed, the richest initial word decoration in our Mahzor is devoted to the yozer, which begins with the word "King" (מלך (אמון מאמרך for the second day of New Year (fig. 11). It is surrounded by foliage scrolls inhabited by full-figure creatures. A similar initial word adorns a yozer for the first day of New Year in a contemporary Days of Awe Mahzor, which begins with the word "King" (מלך (אזור גבורה (fig. 12).  

Fig. 12:London Days of Awe Mahzor Franconia, first quarter of the 14th century London, BL Add. 16916, fol. 1 (Jerusalem, CJA Documentation)	Fig. 11: Munich, BSB Cod. Hebr. 4, II:30

Apart from a pair of dragons, which dominate in both initials, our foliate scrolls include several favourite motifs of this period such as a lion, dog, griffin and a knight (fig. 11). Of these motifs, the red lion passant is the only animal illustrating the initial word "King" (מלך). Similarly, another red lion in our manuscript is placed below such an initial word (II:38v - fig. 13) and resembles the red lion illustrating the word "King" in the contemporary Ashkenazi Mahzor (fig. 14).

Of these motifs, the red lion passant is the only animal illustrating the initial word "King" (מלך). Similarly, another red lion in our manuscript is placed below such an initial word (II:38v - fig. 13) and resembles the red lion illustrating the word "King" in the contemporary Ashkenazi Mahzor (fig. 14).

Fig. 13: Munich, BSB Cod. Hebr. 4, II:38v	Fig. 14: Ashkenazi Mahzor South Germany, late 13th-early 14th century Munich, BSB Cod. hebr. 86, fol. 57 (Jerusalem, CJA Documentation)

Motifs unrelated to the text, which were popular in scribal art of the period, are chivalrous and courtly scenes (figs. 5 and 11), a bird of prey and a dog biting a stag (fig. 9). In the Michael Mahzor of 1258 from Regensburg for example, several initial word panels are decorated with knights fighting (e.g. Mich. 617, fols. 4v, 11 - fig. 15).

Fig. 15: Michael Mahzor Regensburg 1258 Oxford, Bodl. Lib. Mich. 617, fol. 11 (Jerusalem, CJA Documentation)	Fig. 11: Munich, BSB Cod. Hebr. 4, II:30

Fig. 16:Munich, BSB Cod. Hebr. 4, I:124	Fig. 17:ViennaHigh Holiday and Sukkot Mahzor Early 14th century,  South Germany  Vienna, ÖNB Cod. hebr. 174, fol. fol. 176v (Jerusalem, CJA Documentation)

Fig. 18:Munich, BSB Cod. Hebr. 4, I:163	Fig. 19:Vienna High Holiday and Sukkot Mahzor Early 14th century,South Germany Vienna, ÖNB Cod. hebr. 174, fol. fol. 176v (Jerusalem, CJA Documentation)