Img. ID: 581833
Sacred and Ritual Objects  

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The following description was prepared by William Gross:

From earliest times, man has tried to protect himself from misfortune by the use of objects which he considered holy or otherwise (e.g., magically) potent. Amulets and talismans are items generally worn around the neck or wrist, carried in a pocket or purse or hung on a wall. They are meant to protect or aid those who carried or wore them. The Hebrew word for amulet, kame‘a, has the root meaning "to bind". Jewish amulets are usually comprised of texts (either letters or graphic symbols) that are inscribed on some sort of material; some may also contain plant matter or precious stones. The texts of amulets usually include holy names that are believed to have the ability to affect reality, along with incantations summoning angels or other magical powers. For the most part, an amulet has a specific purpose: to ease childbirth, facilitate recovery from illness, improve one’s livelihood, and so on, but in the modern world many are also made for general protection.

There exist in the Gross family collection more amulets printed on paper from Morocco than from any other country. These were printed in several cities by various publishers, virtually all of them from the 20th century which was the time for the beginning of Hebrew printing in Morocco with few exceptions.  Many of these contained elements in common, mostly featuring the hamsa and were often printed on colored paper.

This printed amulet for the portection of mother and child carries the typical Jerusalem type imagery, even though it has been printed in Morocco.  It has been printed on blue paper using blue ink and features the large hand, illustrating the wisdom of the hand, as a representation of the amuletic hamsa. The text mentions that the amulet is based on the tradition of the Ba'al Shem Tov. The owners of the print shop were Moshe Amar & Jaques Amar (today Imar, in Geneva. At one time was a printer in Tel Aviv) The model for the amulet is that printed by Yitzhak Levi in Jerusalem. There are several examples of this amulet in the Gross Family Collection, each printed on a different color paper: Cream,Pink, Green and Orange