The Herlingen Haggadah (Seder Haggadah shel Pesah), written and illustrated by Aaron Wolf Herlingen in Pressburg (modern-day Bratislava) in 1729–1730, is a cherished piece of Jewish history. This beautifully illustrated book has a fascinating story to tell: it was part of a daring rescue mission during the Second World War, when Alexander Guttmann smuggled it, along with other precious texts, out of Nazi Germany to the United States in 1940.
Today, this remarkable Haggadah is on permanent loan to the Leo Baeck College from the Judaica Conservancy Foundation. Its presence serves as a poignant reminder of both the resilience of Jewish culture and the importance of preserving historical treasures for future generations.
You can listen to an interview with Alexander Guttmann at the LBI's digital archive Digibaeck here: https://digipres.cjh.org/delivery/DeliveryManagerServlet?dps_pid=IE9399362
