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Although few examples of the work of embroiderer Jacob Koppel Gans remain, he is best known for this Torah ark curtain and valance, dating to 1772 or 1773, made of velvet and embroidered with metallic…
The purpose of the Torah crown is visually to augment the status of the Torah scroll, emphasizing its importance and centrality to Jewish life. These magnificent silver ornaments are placed over the…
I. W. Loewenbach’s medal commemorating the dedication of the new synagogue in Munich (1826) is among the earliest German synagogue medals. On one side of the medal, one sees the façade of the…
The origin of this Torah scroll is in Turkey. It was donated by the Camondo family, one of the most important Jewish families in Istanbul, many of whose members settled in Paris and greatly…
Edouard Brandon’s painting of Amsterdam’s famous Portuguese Synagogue (1675) is set on the Ninth of Av, a fast day commemorating and mourning the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem. Members of the…
Scenes from everyday life are scarcely to be found in these pages. Rather you will feel that you have been transported for a while to some far-off, exotic country where different flowers grow and…
Jules Lellouche painted the interior of this synagogue in Djerba during World War II, when Tunisia was ruled by Vichy France. Though Tunisia’s Jewish community escaped mass deportations and murder in…
Jews, in the past celebrated for the ability to understand all things, are now in danger of being unable to understand anything at all culturally, for they do not have self-awareness. Without such…
Reb Shmelke:
Well, I can see that you are a clever man, so I will tell you the whole story in brief. [He takes a drink.] As you see me before you, I’m called Reb Smelke [Shmelke, as pronounced by a…
The Bah (Bayit Hadash) was asked concerning the practice in synagogues of using music which is sung in the houses of worship (of non-Jews). It is only forbidden regarding…