Cover for Circumcision Cushion
Artist Unknown
Late 17th or Early 18th Century
This silk cushion cover, embroidered with metallic thread and metallic braid, is thought to have been made in Istanbul. Divided into two horizontal planes, with a narrow border running on three of its four sides, the cover is adorned with floral motifs and animals in metallic gold thread. On the top horizontal plane sits a six-pointed Star of David and a menorah, marking this as a ritual object, probably used for circumcisions.
Credits
Gift of Dr. Harry G. Friedman / The Jewish Museum, New York.
Published in: The Posen Library of Jewish Culture and Civilization, vol. 5.
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Related Guide
Early Modern Visual and Material Culture
1500–1750
Early modern Jewish visual culture flourished, with illuminated manuscripts, ornate synagogues, and portraiture alongside increasing non-Jewish interest in Jewish customs and greater Jewish self-representation.
Public Access
Image
Places:
Constantinople, Ottoman Empire (Istanbul, Türkiye)
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Torah Finials (Iran)
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The kapporet is a short valance hung over the curtain of the Torah ark that first began to appear in Eastern Europe in the late seventeenth century. The griffins and crowns that appear on this kappore…

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