Sukkot Celebrations

Bernard Picart

1724

Print of two scenes: top shows a procession of men in prayer shawls holding branches through a synagogue. Bottom shows a group of people eating at a table in a tabernacle.
Between 1723 and 1737, illustrator Bernard Picart partnered with the Dutch bookseller, editor, and publisher Jean-Frédéric Bernard on Cérémonies et coutumes religieuses de tous les peuples du monde (Religious Ceremonies and Customs of All the Peoples of the World) that was translated immediately into Dutch and later into English and German. It was reprinted many times. It was the most famous encyclopedia work on religion of its time, and is considered the first global, comparative vision of religion. It was condemned by the Catholic Church but was a success with the public. The book included depictions of Jewish religious practices in Amsterdam, focusing on the wealthy Sephardic community. Here, two rituals related to the holiday of Sukkot are depicted, (top) hakafot (processions around the synagogue) with the lulav and etrog, and (bottom) a festive meal in the sukkah.

Credits

Bernard Picart (workshop of), Viering van Soekot of het Loofhuttenfeest. Procession des Palmes chez les Juifs Portugais / Repas de Juifs pendant la Fête des Tentes, 1724. Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam.

Published in: The Posen Library of Jewish Culture and Civilization, vol. 5.

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