Obj. ID: 39156
Sacred and Ritual Objects  Hanukkah lamp, Kalisz, circa 1825

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.

Silver Chanukah lamps from the area of the Ukraine and Poland, except for the famous "Baal Shem Tov" form, are relatively rare and often quite individual and ornate in style. This small but charming example comes from Kalisz, as identified in the silver mark, a place from which very few identifiable Jewish ritual objects are known. The dominant characteristic is, of course, the two griffins, a Messianic symbol used frequently on religious objects in the area, standing on either side of the crown. The frequent utilization on silver objects of mythical animals is a phenomenon almost unknown outside of Galicia in particular and the Ukraine in general. Another Judaica piece from Kalisz, a magnificent Esther scroll case, is in the Soclof collection in Cleveland.