Featured Torah Finials made into decorations

Spent a few days in Marrakech, loved it, and on my last day, found these Torah finials in a shop deep in the souk. They both are damaged slightly sadly (one is missing a few bells, and both came free of their pottery stands during the airplane flights), but I love them. I know faked Judaica is notoriously common, but it only cost me $60 for both of them, and I don't think the seller realized what they were since he didn't even mention they were Jewish. What's strange is that doesn't look like a chai in the Star of David- it looks like a het.

Can't wait to go back to Morocco. I spent a lot of time at a flea market at the edge of the medina because I thought the souk was just filled with over-priced touristy stuff, until the last day when I strayed from the center of the souk and realized there were actual dealers with great prices on the outskirts.

 

Thanks for rescuing those. How they got left in Morocco I haven't the foggiest.

 

Morocco had a very large Jewish population at one time.

 

Absolutely, actually the biggest in the Muslum Arab world, according to this site:

https://www.resetdoc.org/story/the-jews-of-morocco-a-journey-through-a-community-become-diaspora/

Very interesting story.

 

Indeed, and yes, very interesting.

 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/372627304294

 

A good price, but I plan to keep mine since I'm Jewish.

 

i.e. a lot of my neighbors! When Israel declared its existence again, the Moroccan government kicked most of their Jews out. Weird and idiotic but true. Normally something like that would never have been left behind.

Good! Those need a home if not being put back into service.

 

well mate , if yer jewish.....sell them for a good price....
you'll still be jewish ......and have money to buy more jewish stuff !!!!

take it from a jew who knows !

 

there are so many of those for sale , I can't help but wonder where all the scrolls went....

 

If they do end up listed, be prepared to ship to Israel. Israelis buy (back) a lot of vintage Judaica.

The scrolls... don't know if I want to know. My local Messianic congregation has a set of old scrolls, but the finials are new-ish. Maybe the old set and the scrolls got separated at some point.

 

I was taught that a new scroll would have all it's jewelry made exclusively for it....and that all the metal stays with that scroll...
unless the scroll itself was damaged beyond repair.....

 

One would think, but every so often the scrolls survive and the metal gets mashed. The ones I'm talking about survived a fire and the metalware may not have made it through. WWII. Stuff happened.

 

I have to wonder too. I like to think that the torah scrolls these were associated with, ended up either with their original worshippers or properly buried/in a genizah, according to Jewish rite. But I can gain some small solace from adding them to my collection of judaida, knowing they'll be honored.

 

I'm down with that too.............. a mitzvah !