Rabbit hunts in haggadahs

(JTA) - The Passover Haggadah is one of the few sacred Jewish texts that has a long history of including illustrations, and among the most remarkable are detailed images of rabbit hunts that often appear in the opening pages, even before the text of the Seder really begins.

The images, which are varied in style and can be found in editions dating back to medieval and early modern Germany, often present hunters and dogs chasing rabbits, the latter of which are generally depicted escaping over a fence or off of the page. They are dramatic images and, like much in the Haggadah, they are curious a...