Img. ID: 35660

The custom of donating sacred objects to the synagogue is common among all Jewish communities. Those objects are usually accompanied by dedicatory inscriptions attached to them. Nonetheless, the dedication of silver plaques as sacred objects is unique to the Greek Romaniot communities. Some inscriptions do reveal that occasionally they were donated with other ritual objects, such as a Torah scroll, a parokhet, or a mappah. Yet, unlike
the common custom in other communities, they were not attached to specific ritual objects at the time of the donation. When a large number of shadai'ot plaques were assembled in a synagogue they were sewn on to a parokhet. Some were also attached to Torah case wrappers or belts, which were probably hung along the walls of the synagogue on different occasions, and on parokhot. Although the events mentioned in the dedicatory inscriptions occurred at different times, the plaques were consistently donated to the synagogue on special days in the Jewish Year. The three pilgrimage festivals (Passover, Shavu'ot, Sukkot) are common, as well as Rosh Ha-shanah, Yom Kippur, Rosh Hodesh (the New Moon) and Sabbaths. Rarely does the date of the donation mentioned on the plaque indicate another day of the week.
The custom was practiced among the Romaniot communities of Arta, Ioannina, Previzia, and is still practiced in Trikala and Larissa. No differences were noticeable between the two congregations in Ioannina concerning shape, dedicatory formulas or names of donors. The only distinction between the Old and New Holy Congregations is the name of the synagogue (when it appears). Most shadai'ot from Trikala and Larissa, documented recently, differ from the others and are shaped as Stars of David enclosed within circles. Few of them maintain the early linguistic dedicatory formulas.