Obj. ID: 39427
Sacred and Ritual Objects Bag of earth from the Holy Land, Jerusalem, circa 1920
The following description was prepared by William Gross:
While death and mourning are not generally considered a subject with a lot of graphic expression, within the Jewish tradition there are quite a few examples. Such things as memorial poems, burial plot receipts, Yahrzeit memorial plaques, etc. gave ample scope for artistic creativity. The customs surrounding this sad time of life gave birth to graphic design.
Traditionally, it has been the dream of every Jew to be buried in Jerusalem. At the beginning of the 20th cenury someone developed an idea for all of those for whom such a buriel was impossible, who were nearly 100% of the Jewish population from that time. This object is a bag of earth from Jerusalem from the 1920's, a cloth container printed with the picture of the Valley of the Tombs. The bag was sent abroad to be placed on the head of the deceased person so that it was as if he or she was buried in the Holy Land, in the city of Jerusalem. It was a sort of spiritual pilgrimage to tie the deceased to the Holy Land of Israel. Such bags of earth came in different designs with different images of Holy Places, the textiles being in a variety of colors. This bag contains German words as well as Hebrew and English, probably making it among the earlier examples of this genre.
Inscription: U-Kfar Admato 'imo