Papercut for hanging in the Sukkah, produced by David Hamburger. [Presumably Germany], 1777.

Papercut; ink and paint on paper.

Rectangular papercut, decorated with meticulous lace-like geometrical and vegetal patterns, incorporating three pairs of animals: a pair of crouching deer eating grass, a pair of erect lions standing over bent and flowering tree trunks, and a pair of storks. The various animals surround a large central circle displaying the text of the blessing to be recited upon entering the Sukkah for the first time, and upon leaving it. The base of the circle contains the signature of the papercut's creator:
"David Hamburger / Erev Yom Kippur 1777". Circles appear in each of the four corners, three of them with Biblical verses relating to Sukkot, and the fourth (on the bottom left) with a dedicatory caption:
"Belongs to the distinguished, famed R. Anschel Wertheimer".

Due to their ephemeral nature and exposure to the elements, Sukkah decorations have not survived in large quantities. Papercut Sukkah decorations are even rarer, and constitute their own subgenre within the two categories of Jewish papercuts and of Sukkah decorations (which were generally either printed or hand-drawn).

41.5X34 cm. Overall good condition. Stains and dampstains, slightly affecting ink and paint. Tears and damage, professionally restored. New gold-colored Bristol board base.