Obj. ID: 39382  Torah case wrapper, Libya, circa 1930

The following description was prepared by William Gross:

In the Ashkenazi and Sephardi tradition the Torah Scroll is protected when not being read by a textile covering, often very beautifully embroidered. In the Mizrachi and Romaniote traditions, the Sefer Torah is generally not robed in a mantle, but rather housed in an ornamental wooden case which protects the scroll, called a "tik".

The custom in both Tunisia and Libya was to wrap the multi-faceted wooden Tik in a fabric. This Torah Tik wrapper is made with a velvet center piece is decorated by the depiction of a large hamsa and two fish, typical amuletic symbols used in both Libya and Tunisia. The velvet fabric is bordered by woven fabric ribbons, galoons, on which are depicted the star and crescent as well as the talismanic hamsa. The loops on the top of the textile engaged metal pieces around the top the wooden torah container, or Tik, in which Libyan and Tunisian Jews kept their Torah scrolls. The donor, Moshe Tshuvah, carries a typically Libyan name. One of the members of this family has become one of the leaders of the Israeli economy.

Inscription: The Servant of the Lord Moshe Tshuva, may his end be a good one.