From the Talmud, we can see that matzah looked very different at that time than what we are now familiar with. First of all, there were no matzah bakeries. Each family baked their own, throughout the holiday. (This is still done in many Yemenite communities). Their matzah was thicker; the maximum being a hand-breadth thick (about 8 cm). They were soft, not the crunchy texture that we are used to. (Many Sephardim and Yemenites still make them soft, but adhere to a maximum thickness of 2 cm; the breadth of a finger).

The usual oven for baking matzah in those days can still be seen in the Middle East. It is known today as a ta'abun; a sort of barrel placed over a fire, with the loaves of dough pressed along the inside to bake. That we have a question in the Talmud regarding bread found in the street during Passover, under which conditions can it be assumed to be matzah, and which chametz, shows that their matzah and their bread looked identical. (The practice of making holes in matzah is quite recent, despite what unscrupulous missionaries may tell you).

The only differences were those not readily seen. Special flour was used, no leavening agents were allowed. The water used in the baking had to be kept overnight, in order to equalize the temperature, as warm water might hasten the leavening process. Matzot were also made with ingredients other than water (eggs, fruit juice, honey, etc.), but not for the Sedarim, as it would not fit the Torah's command of "bread of affliction". This type of matzah is called "Matzah Ashirah" ("rich" matzah) Sephardim still do this. Ashkenazim only allow this for children, the elderly, and the infirm. Check your package of egg matzah, and you will see such a warning printed on the side of the box. The fear is that the additional ingredients could serve as a catalyst, shortening the usual fermentation time.

In Ashkenazi lands, the type of oven used is more like a pizza oven, heated with wood. Over the centuries, it became customary to make the matzot thinner and thinner. The main reason for this is so it will become completely baked, quickly, thus averting the possibility that due to the thickness, the inside might become chametz before the baking is complete. Another reason is that Rabbenu Asher, writing in about 1300, recommended the practice of baking all the matzot BEFORE Passover (as opposed to every day). The reason for this was that, in case there was an unnoticed particle of chametz somewhere, it would be nullified before Passover. According to most opinions, nullification of chametz is impossible during Passover.

A regular soft, thick matzah would not keep for eight days. Therefore, the cracker-like matzah was born. The Jews of Djerba also baked a similar matzah, although not as thin as the Ashkenazi variety. Their descendants still use this type. Sepharadim still use the ta'abun, but many have substituted a small electrical oven for home baking. In Israel, some Sephardi owned pizza shops bake matzah! In Ashkenazi areas of Medieval Europe, Jews were not allowed to own land; as a result, it was difficult to have Shemurah Matzah, guarded from the harvesting. Matzah made from wheat purchased on the open market was the standard. The custom in Germany and France was to bake three huge matzot for the seder, enough for the entire family.

A single, double, or triple set of holes was made in each matzah, so as to indicate its proper place on the table, with the single holed matzah placed on top. This was known as "Matzat Mitzvah". To my knowledge, it is no longer made. When other communities say "Matzat Mitzvah", they mean something different entirely. As Matzah was an adjunct to the Passover sacrifice, it is considered ideal to make or obtain matzot made at the time appropriate for the sacrifice, in the afternoon before the Seder. This is by no means the law, but it is considered an ideal. These are known as matzat mitzvah, or Erev Pesach (Passover Eve) matzot. The same method of baking was traditionally used for Shemurah and non-Shemurah matzot. Today, however, only Shemurah is hand baked. Machine made matzot came in during the last part of the nineteenth century. They became, and remain, controversial. That will be my next installment.