Object Record
Images
Metadata
Catalog Number |
1997.89.1 |
Object Name |
Torah, Sepher |
Description |
This Czech Torah came from Matvazinka in Prague and was written in 1850. It is one of the 1,564 Sifrei Torahs (Scrolls of the Law) that arrived in Westminster Synagogue in London on February 7, 1964. During the war, the Nazis looted the synagogues of Bohemia and Moravia and collected religious objects which were taken-in by the State Jewish Museum in Prague after the war. The scrolls were collected in the Michle Synagogue and remained there for over 20 years. The State Jewish Museum lacked the resources to care for the scrolls and had no way of effectively exhibiting them. In 1963, an art dealer worked with the Czech government and a London based philanthropist to acquire the scrolls with an agreement to entrust them to a nonprofit organization. Westminster Synagogue took on the responsibility of collecting and restoring the scrolls. The Memorial Scroll Trust began looking for synagogues who needed a Sifrei Torah and agreed to send them on permanent loan. For those scrolls not suited for use, the Trust made arrangements to loan them to synagogues, educational institutions, and other organizations who can use them for educational purposes. The Virginia Holocaust Museum requested a scroll for exhibit in 1997. This is scroll No. 454. |
Date |
c. 1850 |
Provenance |
The Torah is on loan to the Virginia Holocaust Museum by the Memorial Scrolls Trust and is one of the 1564 rescued scrolls preserved by the State Jewish Museum in Prague. |
Place of Origin |
Matvazinka, Czechoslovakia |