WHAT SORT of Haggada do you choose to read at the Seder table? Some prefer texts rich in commentaries and notes, to arm themselves for argument and study. Others refuse to be parted from wine-stained Haggadot that have been in the family for years. The aesthetically inclined participant finds that profusely illustrated publications infuse the familiar words with new meanings.

Among this last group are those with a historic bent, who search out reproductions of classic medieval or Renaissance-era Haggadot. They pore over the sumptuously colored and decorated editions, marveling at the worlds and attitudes that unfold with close examination of the way artists then envisaged slavery and freedom.

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