Curator's Corner
#1 Haggadot
In time for the observance of Pesach, the book commemorating the Exodus from Egypt, Haggadah, will be read by the Jews around the world. Some of the most beautifully illustrated Hebrew manuscripts are in the British Library, and the 1330s 'Golden Haggadah' is one of them. www.bl.uk/collection-items/golden-haggadah
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#2 Ornamenting the Torah Scrolls
Last year, and every year before, when the curtain of the Ark of The Great Synagogue was drawn back for Passover services, the blue and silver shine and spark was revealed. Not this year. These photos were taken last year and show the nine Torah scrolls enveloped in embroidered velvet mantles and decorated with splendid silver ornaments.
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#3 The Building Over Time
In this series, instead of spending time inside the museum archives, we take a walk to the see the shul, because maybe you are already missing it… and there are some treasured old images showing the splendour of the building.
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#4 ANZAC Day & Abraham Rothfield
Some objects from the AM Rosenblum Jewish Museum collection document the history of the early Jewish congregation in Sydney, and some tell not so distant stories of brave individuals of the community. These medals pay homage to Abraham Rothfield (1890–1968), an educator, who is still warmly remembered at The Great Synagogue where he was much loved teacher of Bar Mitzvah boys. As a young man, Rothfield was decorated for his outstanding bravery in action on the battlefields of the World War I.
Names of the NSW Jewish soldiers who fought and lost lives during the WWI and WWII are commemorated in The Great Synagogue Roll of Honour Book, usually on display for the ANZAC Day.
#5 Illuminated Addresses
The AM Rosenblum Jewish Museum was opened in the early 1980s when then Great Synagogue leader and soon President Rodney Rosenblum and his wife Sylvia, a talented Museum Studies graduate, recognised the importance of items which till then had been stored in less than ideal conditions around The Great.
Through the work of the Rosenblums, curators and volunteers, a professional approach has seen the objects in the collection properly stored and recorded and grants for aspects of the museum’s work from the State and Federal Governments.
Here are some of the Illuminated Addresses from the Collection, presented to leading community members on special occasions.
#6 The Great's Women
The Great Synagogue in Sydney opened 142 years ago and women have always contributed to its success and development. Not a single week on religious or social and community calendar would be possible without the Great Women's talents and dedication. Their attire and fashion may have changed over the years but their love and enthusiasm remain ageless.
#7 Drawn to The Great Synagogue
Artists have always been drawn to the sandstone beauty of The Great Synagogue and some of these treasured artworks are over 100 years old. They depict the view that has been long gone and one we can only imagine: in clear line of sight, the pair of domed synagogue's towers dominating Elizabeth Street and visible from afar across the Hyde Park.
#8 Offertory Books
Tzedakah - Jewish charity - is one of the most important religious and social obligations. Whether supporting the poor and elderly, orphans' education, or a Jewish hospital and refuge, by the 1870s several Jewish charitable institutions were established in Sydney and Melbourne. In the past as today, donations are customarily pledged when being called up to the Torah on Shabbat and Jewish festivals. But have you ever wondered how the offerings were recorded on Shabbats in the past? The inventiveness knew no boundaries: the Jews in England came up with an Offertory Book, also known as Shabbat or Gabbai Book. A hefty parchment-bound register with the congregants' names listed on the left and columns with various amounts, and a list of charities on the right or along the top, was common in the colony as well. Each page was provided with a lace that could be inserted in the hole indicating the purpose and the specified amount. The marked names and amounts and other details were later transferred to an account book during the week.
#9 Etrog Boxes
Celebrated by Jews around the world and over the centuries, the festival of Sukkot inspired the creation of Etrog containers of many sizes and shapes. Silver remains the popular material, and it is rather common to find a lovely collection of Etrog boxes in any Jewish museum.
#10 Shabbat Candelighting Postcards
A Shabbat Shalom greeting this week comes from three collections of Judaica showing early Jewish postcards. Lighting Shabbat candles is traditionally performed by the woman of the house as she ushers in the Shabbat on Friday evening. Usually, two candles are lit, but blessing four candles became common in larger households in Europe more than a century ago.
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#11 Archibald Connections in Our Museum Collection
To mark the Archibald Prize exhibition at the Art Gallery of NSW in Sydney, we share some of the paintings from our AM Rosenblum Jewish Museum collection. Established in 1921, the 'Archibald' is awarded annually to the best portrait. In Australia, perhaps nothing speaks higher of artistic quality than being a finalist or a winner of this coveted art prize. It may come as a surprise that over the years, several artists commissioned by The Great Synagogue reached this status.
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#12 Unique Silver Chanukiahs
Leib Aisack Falk (1889-1957) was born in Latvia and after a few years in Britain he was appointed to The Great Synagogue as an Assistant Minister in 1922, becoming a rabbi in 1936. He was Second Minister for many years and Acting Chief Minister for two periods. Despite exclusion from guilds and other restrictions, Eastern European Jews worked in many trades, and it was probably during his earlier yeshiva studies in Lithuania where the young Falk met Jewish craftsmen and discovered his talents. Later in Sydney, Rabbi Falk's craftsmanship enriched the Synagogue's collection of ritual objects, admired to the present day.
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#13 146 Years Ago
In the midst of the global pandemic, two of The Great's important anniversaries have passed without much notice. Yet, they both mark significant moments in the Synagogue's history and are documented by rare artworks. First, 146 years ago, on 26 January 1875, the Foundation stone of The Great Synagogue was laid. The occasion inspired a group of Sydney Jewish women: they formed a lively fundraising team to hold a 'Ladies Bazaar'. By December, a second milestone was reached when almost £5000 was raised for the Synagogue building fund.
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#14 Happy Birthday Great
4 March 1878 – 4 March 2021
4 March 1878 was Monday in Sydney. The weather was fine and The Sydney Morning Herald - for the price of twopence – was just out. On this day, the Sydney omnibus fares were to be increased and the Original Royal Marionettes performance was to highlight the evening at The School of Arts. The Sydney weekend activities seemed to be too much for twenty-two persons appearing before the Central Police Court and charged for drunkenness, use of obscene language and property damage. The price of wool and gold was steady, transatlantic shipping was on its way … yet, none of these news attracted the usual interest among the Jewish community.
It was the Religious Announcements on the Herald's first page that the Sydney Jews wanted to see. David Cohen, Honorary Secretary was reminding the congregation that the long anticipated consecration of The Great Synagogue on Elizabeth Street will take place on this day, Monday 4th March at 3 pm. The Secretary was also prompting the officials to be in attendance at the Synagogue chambers at 'half-past 1 o'clock precisely' to ensure the success of the ceremonial pomp. And success it was … The Sydney press was captivated with the Synagogue's imposing architecture by Thomas Rowe and the dignified consecration ceremony presented by the Jewish clergy.
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#15 Matzah-Making Tradition
Whether you spell it matzah, matzoh, matzha or matza, it all means one tradition: commemoration of the Exodus and the unleavened bread eaten by the Israelites fleeing slavery in Egypt. The eight-day Festival of Passover or Pesach includes rituals celebrated at home around the dinner table centred on the symbolic matzah. The 1890s matzah-making machine in Waterloo Solomon's factory in Sydney was turned off almost a decade ago. Today, tonnes of boxes of matzah are imported from Israel every year, but have you ever wondered how they were made before the first manufacturing?
When hand-made, the matzah dough – flour mixed with water - required to be quickly flattened by wooden rolling pin, and perforated to prevent the fermentation before baking. While throughout the old Jewish world, the punctures were made either by using a round metal plate or a roller with sharp teeth, Jews in the heart of Europe came up with other matzah contraptions.
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Curator's Corner
#16 The Mystery of Church Furnishings
Tucked between the busy Goulburn Street and tall city buildings stands the Sydney's oldest Lutheran Church. Built in 1883, it may be guarding a century-old mystery linked to the early Jewish community. Carved cedar furniture there looks familiar to those who visit The Great Synagogue, but it is the six-point star that catches the eye. The Star of David has not always been associated exclusively with Judaism, but its presence raises curiosity.
Where did the church furniture originate? It is possible that answers lie in some unexpected twist, involving also The Great Synagogue – today the oldest continuous place of Jewish worship in Sydney.
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#17 ANZAC Day 2021
Today, thousands of young and old across the nation commemorate the Australians and New Zealanders who served and died on the world's battlefields. A century ago, the portico of The Great Synagogue in Sydney was transformed into a memorial to Australian Jews who served and died in combat during the World War I. They fought alongside the 'diggers' and many sacrificed their lives. While the name of General John Monash may be the best known in Australia, three plaques affixed at the eastern side of the Synagogue commemorate those whose courage, contribution and suffering must not be forgotten. This year again, The Great Synagogue's community remembers the sacrifices made by Australian Jewish soldiers, past and present. Lest we forget.
First three images credit: Jono David/HaChayim HaYehudim Jewish Photo Library www.JewishPhotoLibrary.com
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#18 York Street Virtual
What happens when a museum curator meets a 3D specialist in The Great Synagogue? They virtually walk inside the long-lost synagogue built in Sydney in 1844. Interest in Victorian architecture recently brought together Jana Vytrhlik and Zac Levi to create an unrivalled visual reconstructions.
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#19 Where's Wally? In The Great?
Here is a Curator's Corner Challenge for you!
Drawn in 1888 by Sydney cartographer M. S. Hill, the map captures the growing metropolis in the age of coal and steam. It reveals the beauty of Sydney harbour and the bold architecture of Thomas Rowe, just ten years old. Can you find it? And in turn, which of the Sydney's landmarks can't you see?
The City of Sydney (a Bird's Eye View), 1888. Collection of the State Library of New South Wales
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#20 L'Shana Tova 5782
The collection of the Rosenblum Jewish Museum at The Great Synagogue Sydney has many little treasures that can bring big joy during challenging times. Today, in Curator's Corner, we share a few delightful postcards just in time to wish you Happy New Year, L'Shana Tovah 5782.
All three collection of The Great Synagogue, Sydney.
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#21 Shining Stars
One of the first features noticed by many entering the imposing interior of The Great Synagogue in Sydney are the golden stars sprinkled high on the cobalt blue ceiling. Their origins are still a bit of mystery and subject of local stories but it seems that they were not part of the Thomas Rowe design in 1878. Whether the starry ceiling dates to the early 1900s or later, it joins a centuries-old tradition of depicting the heavens under which one prays. From the Sydney's Great Synagogue and St Andrew's Cathedral to the little village synagogues in Southern Bohemia (Kasejovice, Čkyně), or a large Jewish temple in Vienna (Stadttempel Synagogue) and a Christian royal chapel in Paris, shiny stars have been bringing hope and solace to the worshipers for centuries.
Happy New Year 2022
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#22 On this Day in Prague: 14 February 1945
On this day we celebrate the people we love but also remember the buildings that were once loved. Towards the end of WWII, there were no Jews left in Prague, and the city’s largest synagogue was used by the Nazis to store confiscated Jewish property. By tragic accident, Prague was bombed by the allied armies on 14 February 1945 and the Vinohradska Synagogue’s interior burned down. It was demolished in 1951. The design of The Great Synagogue in Sydney manifested the monumental style of the European ‘cathedral synagogues’ decades earlier, and today we will love the building even more.
Photos from the Jewish Museum Prague
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#23 Happy Birthday Great
Happy 144th Birthday to us!
The Great Synagogue Sydney 4 March 1878
Detail, Ark Curtain by June Fiford, Australian goldwork artist, 1998
#24 Purim
Today, our museum objects mark the upcoming holiday of Purim, a celebration of the deliverance of the Jews from the Haman’s murderous plot. The dramatic story of Esther will be read from a special scroll on parchment, Megillat Esther. Unlike the Torah, which is never decorated, some of the renditions of the Book of Esther include rich embellishments and are rolled onto a single roller. More affluent Jewish families commissioned a silversmith to fit the illuminated scroll into a fine filigree silver case.
Purim is one of the happiest Jewish holidays ... and also the noisiest. A grogger, best described as a rattling noisemaker, is another museum item. Whenever the name of Haman is read, the noise of spinning grogger chases the evil away.
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#25 The Gates of Sydney's Great
For over a century, those who walked through the portico of Sydney’s Great Synagogue often stopped and marvelled at the mighty, dark green iron gates. Wrought and cast iron had been a feature of Victorian suburbs but we would hardly find another synagogue in the world with such imposing gates.
With their restoration underway, some new findings have surfaced. For example, the gates were not part of the original design in 1874. Moreover, they were still “missing” when the foundation stone was laid a year later. And when the gates finally emerged in 1878, their decoration became sought-after backdrop for many happy occasions ever since.
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#26 On This Day, 31 May, 40 Years Ago...
The first of its kind in Australia, The AM Rosenblum Jewish Museum was officially opened at The Great Synagogue in Sydney on 31 May 1982.
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#27 Ceremonial Synagogue Textiles
Ceremonial textiles are one of the most striking features of a synagogue sanctuary. Usually made of luxurious fabric and embroidered with silver or gold thread, they include Ark curtains, Torah mantles, bimah covers and other ritual pieces. Over the centuries and continents, Jewish tradition witnessed exquisite golden thread embroideries as well as simple stitches and reused fabric. Yet, they are all united by one purpose, hiddur mitzvah, a commandment to affirm the sanctity of Torah scroll by beautification.
The Great Synagogue‘s ceremonial textiles are presently on display at the Gallery 76 in Concord West as part of the Goldwork Festival where they complement historical and cultural survey of ecclesiastical goldwork embroidery and vestments.
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#28 Dr Helen Light AM z"l
Together with the museum community around Australia, the A. M. Rosenblum Jewish Museum at The Great Synagogue in Sydney is saddened by the recent passing of Dr Helen Light AM, 73, z’l.
Dr Light was the inaugural director of the Jewish Museum of Australia in Melbourne in 1982. She initiated and curated many exhibitions and edited accompanying catalogues. She strived to enhance visitors' understanding of Jewish art, Judaica and the cultural history of the Jewish community. Her focus was theoretical insight as well as work with local material. Dr Light was also a great supporter of designers creating contemporary Judaica. Always willing to share her knowledge, her encouragement to other Jewish curators will be much missed.
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