Img. ID: 344095
Five woodcuts appear after the text, all borrowed (and re-contextualized) from a Hagaddah printed by Giovanni di Gara in 1599. Four full figures are used to illustrate characters from the Esther story: Mordechai, Ahasuerus, Esther, and Haman; the fifth is a vignette showing Mishloah Manot and the Purim meal. The printer tried to adapt the pictures to the new context, although not for all of them it was possible. Without much interference and with only minor changes, the depiction of the Seder as the scene of the Purim festive meal could be used. Also, the figure of the king did not require any graphic intervention, so Ahasuerus is identical to the Pharoah depicted as an enthroned king in the Haggadah. Mordecai is portrayed here as the "wise son" from the Haggadot, that is as an old bearded man. The figure of Haman resembles the "wicked son" who in the illuminated Haggadot was commonly depicted as a soldier. However, the printer did not have any woodblock that he could use for the figure of Queen Esther, therefore he must depict her as an Angel of Death.
E | Esther, Book of (following the order of the story) | *Esther's Story Characters (depicted not in narrative scenes): | Mordecai, the Jew
H | Haggadah, Passover (Listed according to the text of the Haggadah; See also separate biblical subjects in this list) | The Main part of the Haggadah (arranged with the Ritual Acts (Seder Signs) interspersed with the main components of the text of the Haggadah): | Maggid (the narration) | Maggid-5: The baraita of the Four Sons | Sons, the Four, the wise son
K | King
E | Esther, Book of (following the order of the story) | *Esther's Story Characters (depicted not in narrative scenes): | Ahasuerus enthroned
P | Pharaoh
A | Angel , (Sandalfon (angel)), (Metatron (angel))
A | Angel of Death
H | Haggadah, Passover (Listed according to the text of the Haggadah; See also separate biblical subjects in this list) | The Main part of the Haggadah (arranged with the Ritual Acts (Seder Signs) interspersed with the main components of the text of the Haggadah): | Maggid (the narration) | Maggid-5: The baraita of the Four Sons | Sons, the Four, the wicked son
E | Esther, Book of (following the order of the story) | *Esther's Story Characters (depicted not in narrative scenes): | Haman, the vizier
F | Feasting (See also several feasts in Meshal ha-Kadmoni, Book of and Esther, book of. See also: Belshazzar, Feast of, Feasting, labor of the month), Wedding feast)
P | Purim | Purim feast
H | Haggadah, Passover (Listed according to the text of the Haggadah; See also separate biblical subjects in this list) | Hymns at the end of the seder: | Seder table
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Mira Friedman, "Transplanted Illustrations in Jewish Printed Books", Jewish Art 4 (1988), pp. 44-55.