Hanukkah Lamp - Morocco
The 20th century
Brass, cast and engraved
Height: 19.4 cm Width: 13.5 cm Depth: 5 cm
See: North African Lights: Hanukkah Lamps from the Zeyde Schulmann Collection in the Israel Museum (The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, 2003), item 76.
Hanukkah Lamp - Morocco
ADDITIONAL INFO
A hanging Hanukkah lamp of a model that was common in Demnate, Morocco - Openwork triangular backplate with tendrils, flowers in the form of loops and birds on branches. At the center of the lamp, a flower embedded with the Shamash (the servant light, removable). Above are a suspension ring and a fleur-de-lis. At the bottom, a row of four square oil basins - each basin with two pinched ends, used to light two wicks. The lamp is engraved on the surface with dotted lines, zigzag models, stars and tiny circles. These decorations indicate an ancient tradition originating in Spain.
Mordecai Narkiss, an Israeli art historian, describes the decorative tendrils as European arabesque, derived from the Sicilian style found also in the works of Leonardo Da Vinci.
Provenance: Estate of Ora and Mordechai Namir (Ora Namir served as a member of the Israeli Knesset, held ministry posts and served as the ambassador to China and Mongolia. Mordechai Namir served as the mayor of Tel Aviv and as a Knesset member and government minister).
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