Obj. ID: 9517
Sacred and Ritual Objects  Torah scroll staves, Morocco, 19??

The wooden staves consist of lower and upper shields and handles. Each shield and handle are composed of one unit. The stepped round shields are followed by handles, each divided into two parts. The upper handle consists of a tapering cylindrical lower part. It is decorated with diagonal grooves which are filled with twisted silver threads. It is surmounted by a clenched hand which holds the stave. The hand is mounted over an undulating section which begins with a concave ring, and terminates in a toothed circlet. A silver band is set on each end of the bottom of the lower section. The lower band bears a foliated scroll pattern. The upper band bears a dedicatory inscription engraved in linear letters, which reads: לעי!ן)לעילוי נשמת( בתו היקרה מרים אפלאלו ת!נצבה )תהי נשמתה צרורה בצרור החיים( וסה!ת )וספר התורה( שהתנדב כה!ר )כבוד הרב( שלמה אפלאלו היו! )ה' ישמרהו ויזכהו( !For the exaltation of the soul of his dear daughter Miriam Aflalu, may her soul be bound up in the bond of life, and the Torah scroll that has been donated by the honourable Rabbi Solomon Aflalu may the Lord grant him favour! The lower handle is tapering, and begins with an upper part composed of three convex rings above a concave ring. The handle ends in an elongated undulating section.