Glossary

The entries selection comes from the book “Dictionary of Judaica” (2005), which was written by a group of authors led by Eva Kosáková . Entries were further processed by Jaroslav Kuntoš, Dana Veselská, Olga Sixtová, Michaela Scheibová and Lenka Uličná. The book can be purchased at our e-shop.

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Torah shield (Heb. tas)

One of the adornments for the Torah scroll*, which hangs on a chain at the front of the dressed scroll. It developed in the course of the 16th century from a simple hanging plate with the name of the holiday to which is related the chapter of the scroll that appears immediately after being unwound. Its basic shape is a rectangular or oval, with hammered, damascene metalwork or engraved ornamentation; sometimes, the shape matches that of the decorative motifs. The surface of the shield contains a box for replaceable plates with the names of holidays, and small dedicatory plates may hang from the bottom edge. The iconographic elements of the ornamentation are based on biblical themes – the most frequent motif is that of a pair of lions guarding the tablets of the Ten Commandments. The ornamentation is not completely prescribed, hence the decorative elements may be arranged differently, omitted or replaced with less usual motifs, usually at the request of the person having it made. The shield is usually made of silver, sometimes gilt, less often silver-plated copper or copper alloy. The size of the shield varies considerably, depending on the size of the scroll; the height of a normal shield is about 30 centimetres.

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