Obj. ID: 37439
Sacred and Ritual Objects  Hanukkah lamp, Austria-Hungary/Habsburg Monarchy, circa 1750

The following description was prepared by William Gross:

The Festival of Chanukah is celebrated in the winter period around December and commemorates a Biblical story in which the Jews of the Land of Israel rebel against the Greek occupiers. They reclaim the desecrated Holy Temple in Jerusalem and, miraculously, the small amount of pure oil remaining is enough to keep the Temple light going for eight days. Lamps with eight burners are lit during this holiday, both in the synagogue and at home. Through the centuries, such lamps have taken a wide variety of forms.

A most unusual Chanukah menorah, this lamp carries not only the double-headed eagle symbol of the Austrian Empire at its crest, but a portrait of the Emperor Karel VI as well. To find portraits of any sort on ritual items is unusual, but to find one that is almost 3 dimensional is of extreme rarity. Emperor Karel was the father of the most famous Maria Theresa. The two side pieces of the Chanukah lamp are patterned after soldiers, adding to the unusual imagery presented in this lamp.