Wing For Jewish Art and Life
The Jack, Joseph, and Morton Mandel Wing for Jewish Art and Life presents the material culture of Jewish communities worldwide, from the Middle Ages to the present day, and is conceived to provide a view of Jewish life that integrates both its sacred and its secular dimensions. Showcasing the aesthetic value of objects as well as their social and historical significance, the comparative display unfolds in five themes that highlight the individual and the communal, the sacred and the mundane, and the heritage of the past, and the creative innovations of the present. The reconfigured wing includes a new Synagogue Route, unique to the Israel Museum, containing four synagogue interiors from the continents of Europe, Asia, and the Americas; a dramatic introductory display focusing on the Jewish life cycle that features singular treasures from the collections relating to the ritual ceremonies of birth, marriage, and death; a new gallery space to showcase the Museum’s holdings of rare illuminated manuscripts; and the integration of works of contemporary art and Judaica.
Highlights on view include: Maimonides’ Mishne Torah (15th century), Zedek-ve-Shalom Synagogue (18th century), the newly restored Fishach sukkah (19th century), Burial society (hevra kadisha) carriage from Hungary (19th century), Ogadéro necklace and bracelets from Izmir, Turkey (late 19th century), a Man’s hooded cape (akhnif) from the Atlas Mountains (late 19th–early 20th centuries).
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