Ars Judaica: The Bar Ilan Journal of Jewish Art, Volume 19, Number 1

Introduction by Naomi Feuchtwanger-Sarig

The decision to dedicate a special issue of Ars Judaica to objects is driven by a recognition of their value in the broader context of Jewish history, culture, and visual expression. This collection of articles unravels multifaceted layers of meaning embedded within these artifacts, offering insights into religious practices, artistic expressions, and communal identities. Through academic exploration and analysis, this issue seeks to foster a deeper appreciation for material heritage within the field of Jewish Studies. The realm of Jewish visual representation is both expansive and flexible, encompassing a broad array of artistic expression. The long and meandering history of the Jewish people as well as developing religious and cultural practices continuously shaped their visual culture. Scholars variously traced the borders of Jewish art history as a discipline, some questioning the existence of any clear boundaries. Our current focus is on how objects are concomitant with ritual and liturgy, and how they were designed to fulfill both individual and communal religious needs.

The evidence indicates that Jewish objects reflect fundamental religious beliefs, customs, and traditions, emphasizing sacred texts, rituals, and communal bonds. These are deeply intertwined with the spiritual and cultural fabric of Judaism, encapsulating a trove of knowledge and insights that illuminate the richness of Jewish heritage. Jewish artifacts imbued with historical significance and profound symbolic meaning are a precious resource for scholars and aficionados alike. Intentionally created material objects provide cases for examining the duality of Jewish visual culture, with loosely outlined margins surrounding its distinctive “gravitational” core. On the one hand, the artifacts display exchanges, transformations, and conversations with surrounding cultures and communities, as well as between the sacred and profane, ritual and functional, prioritized and marginalized. On the other hand, the research presented in the following pages demonstrates how the objects are instrumental in maintaining communal cohesion and manifesting personal and collective self-identity, perception, and representation.

Steven Fine’s “Maimonides’ Straight-Branched Menorah: A Samaritan Parallel” explores the translation of verbal desriptions into visual depictions and models. His analysis focuses on the shape of the side branches of the Temple’s menorah. Although the Bible meticulously recounts the intricate embellishments of these branches, it lack s references regarding their specific shape, which is only partially supplied by rabbinic literature. Fine’s research suggests that the configuration of the menorah’s branches, whether diagonal or arched, served as a visual token of religious and communal identity in Jewish and Samaritan traditions through the ages.

In her article, “A Tale of Two Spice Towers,” Julie A. Harris examines two specific artifacts housed in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. These items, one an ostensibly pre-exilic Iberian spice tower and the other, allegedly Italian, have been the subject of extensive scholarly examination and classification. Harris meticulously analyzes the attributions proposed by scholars over the years, reconstructing the evolution of the historical narrative that has shaped our under[1]standing of the objects’ origins, periods, and functions. She presents multiple compelling arguments that challenge these attributions, highlighting the complexities involved in assessing and labeling museum exhibits and prompting us to question their validity. Harris emphasizes the authority wielded by museum and exhibition curators in endorsing or refuting identifications of objects. Their conclusions not only shape the attribution of these artifacts in the museum’s collection, but also impact how they are echoed in professional literature. This highlights the professional responsibility of curators regarding historical objects.

Hila Manor’s research sheds light on the interactions and exchanges between societal and religious groups. She contests the prevailing belief put forth by scholars that Jewish ceremonial objects at large were inspired by items of a similar function or form in Christian society. She argues that these objects were not only used for religious purposes but also served as symbols of wealth and status within the Jewish community. By comparing the use of spice towers in Jewish homes to the opulent displays of the non-Jewish elite, Manor highlights the interconnectedness of social and religious groups in shaping Jewish material culture. Furthermore, she suggests that gentile interaction with the Jewish elite led to the adoption of similar practices and the incorporation of specially designated multi-sensory elements in their festive gatherings as well. Manor provides a nuanced explanation of the significance and evolution of spice towers in early modern Ashkenaz.

The utilization of objects for both religious and secular purposes is also evident in Maria Stürzebecher’s article, “Fourteenth-Century Nested Beakers from a Jewish Context: Profane Drinking Vessels or Ritual Objects?” It raises the issue of cultural exchange between Jews and Christians in medieval Germany, dealing with two sets of silver nested beakers from the first half of the fourteenth century. Of the small number of such polygonal sets that have come down to us, two can be attributed to a Jewish milieu, particularly to pogroms of the mid-fourteenth century that prompted their owners to hide them. Drawing upon a shared culture in other aspects of daily life, Stürzebecher compares stackable Jewish beakers to those used by the Christian majority culture, emphasizing their common design and purpose. Nested beakers, she claims, should be seen as presentation items, proclaiming wealth and self-esteem, showcasing their owner’s social and economic standing during negotiations over business transactions, while also fulfilling religious roles within Jewish households.

Discarded and defiled, genizot findings are the topic of two articles in this issue. Initially intended for desecrated holy texts, these hidden repositories stashed away in synagogue attics have been discovered in numerous Central European rural communities. Their castoff material, salvaged and restored, proves to be a valuable treasure trove of artifacts, often created by non-professionals and from lesser materials, sometimes even secondary-use objects.

The articles by Lenka Uličná and Linda Wiesner highlight an extraordinary Jewish phenomenon, showcasing the practice of repurposing, altering, and converting everyday objects into sacred artifacts. Conversely, once these objects are defiled and no longer deemed suitable for religious function, they forfeit their holiness.

Linda Wiesner’s research on “Hidden Findings: Textiles in Genizot” offers insights into the religious life and communal circumstances of the Jews of Niederzissen, a small community in the Rhineland-Palatinate region of Germany. Among some 300 textile objects uncovered there, including secular items, she focuses on 20 ceremonial textiles that were reassigned from everyday fabrics for ritual purposes, namely, to adorn the Torah scroll. She systematically analyzes these unassuming findings, employing a cultural anthropology of textiles methodology. In addition to dealing with the synagogue textiles, Wiesner expands her investigation to include the presence of shoes in the local genizah. To explain this phenomenon, known also from several other genizot, she refers to similar folk customs with which the local Jewish society was ostensibly familiar. She thereby expands the discussion to the realm of European folklore.

The enigmatic presence of footwear in synagogue genizot is similarly a central subject of investigation in Lenka Uličná’s article, “Disposed or Concealed: The Intriguing Case of Genizah Shoes.” The author offers a comprehensive descriptive and analytical study of over twenty shoes and shoe fragments discovered in Bohemian and Moravian synagogues, now housed in the Jewish Museum in Prague. Uličná’s research delves into the rationale behind the placement of an assortment of men’s, women’s, and children’s shoes, whether singly or in pairs, alongside mutilated sacred texts and religious objects. The presence of a diverse range of items adds to the perplexity of this phenomenon. Through an ethno[1]graphic lens, Uličná explores cultural dynamics between Jews and the surrounding community, which led to the assimilation of customs into Jewish life. Despite the absence of conclusive written sources, Uličná’s study highlights the significance of shared conventions and practices.

Hannah-Lea Wasserfuhr introduces a modern factor into the production, commodification, and procurement of Judaica objects in Germany in the late 1800s and early 1900s. In her article, titled “Adaptation and Imitation: The Iconography of Jewish Ceremonial Objects and Mass Production,” she explores the advent and impact of the industrialization of Judaica items and examines their production methods. Attention is primarily directed toward two enterprises: Lazarus Posen Wwe (Witwe) (Frankfurt am Main and Berlin, 1869–1938), and Bruckmann & Söhne (Heilbronn, 1805–1973). Although these firms did not exclusively target a Jewish clientele, their stylistic choices and iconographic preferences indicate their marketing strategies. This specific period witnessed a departure in patterns of commerce from the Middle Ages and early modern period, when clients would typically order items based on specific models, to a new mode of purchase prompted by commercial advertisements. The emergence of mass[1]produced items, created by machines, allowed for the production of goods on a larger scale, resulting in reduced fabrication costs and increased accessibility to the general public. It also introduced a sense of detachment between the conception and realization of products and the consumer. This was a new, impersonal form of acquisition, whereby rather than directly commissioning artwork from artisans, using traditional methods and visual vocabulary, clients would now purchase publicly advertised and retailed artifacts from manufacturers or intermediaries.

The range of topics presented in this issue covers multiple types of artifacts. Spanning from the ancient Near East to medieval Spain to Ashkenaz during the Middle Ages and early modern period in Germany, Bohemia, and Moravia, down to contemporary Germany, these artifacts offer a prismatic view of Jewish and Samaritan art and visual culture. Comparable to the information that can be gleaned from written records, these objects serve as an essential gateway into Jewish beliefs, values, and customs. Handed down from one generation to the next, these relics serve as witnesses to the past and reflect an innate evolution in response to interaction with the surrounding society. They are essentially physical repre[1]sentations of Judaism’s extensive history and serve as a reminder of the importance of faith, community, and tradition throughout the history of the Jewish people. Spanning a wide range of forms, Jewish visual culture continues to evolve and thrive, leaving an indelible mark on the world of art and culture.

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