Obj. ID: 37215
Sacred and Ritual Objects  Torah shield, Germany, 1736

The following description was prepared by William Gross:

Breastplates – ornamental metal plates or shields hung in front of the Torah scroll – are found in all Ashkenazi communities, as well as Italy and Turkey, but designed differently in each community. In most cases, the breastplate is made of silver or silver-plated metal. In Italy, the breastplate is shaped like a half-coronet and known as the Chatzi-keter, "half-crown." In Turkey, the breastplate is called a Tas and assumes a variety of shapes – circular, triangular, oval, or even the Star of David. In Western, Central, and Eastern Europe the breastplate is called either Tas or Tziz; its function there is not merely ornamental: it designates which Torah scroll is to be used for the Torah reading on any particular occasion, with interchangeable plaques.

The most notable early breastplates, from 17th-century Germany and Holland, were either square or rectangular, but over time they became rounded and decorative, and bells or small dedicatory plaques were suspended from its lower edge. During this period, the design of breastplates was influenced by that of the Torah Ark and the parokhet (curtain) concealing it, featuring various architectural motifs, the menorah (the seven-branched candelabrum), Moses and Aaron, lions, or Torah crowns.

This is an intriguing Torah Shield from many points of view. It has characteristics of German objects in the use of such lions and in the presence of the plaque holder. On the other hand, the rondel at the bottom and the depiction of an ox, or bull, is quite atypical of German lands and much closer to images seen on ritual objects from Galicia and Ukraine (see e.g. CJA objects 485, 620, 639, 18420). The marks are Germanic in style by not in recorded silver mark literature. All of these things hint at a possible origin in Silesia, which was open to influences both from the West - Germany - and the East - Poland and areas south. The date in the inscription places the object in a very early group of Torah Shields. This Tas was brought to America by German Jews who fled Hitler and was in a synagogue in New England. When a Rabbi who had served the congregation for many years retired it was given to him as a gift. It was purchased from his descendants.

Inscription: Yehoshua bar Natan and his wife Mrs. Marechle ban Chaim David, May his memory be a blessing (5)496 [1736]