Shimon Zimel, Shiviti, Ink, gouache, and pencil on cut-out parchment, 1845/46 (date of inscription)
Object Name:
Shiviti
Artist/Maker:
Shimon Zimel
Place Made:
Possibly Tarnów, Austrian Empire (Poland)
Date:
1845/46 (date of inscription)
Medium:
Ink, gouache, and pencil on cut-out parchment
Dimensions:
14 × 12 1/8 in. (35.6 × 30.8 cm)
Credit Line:
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. George Sagan
Accession Number:
JM 51-51

Not On View

A shiviti is a plaque placed before the person who reads from the Torah in synagogue, and is inscribed with the biblical quotation “I have set the Lord always before me.” The elaborate scrollwork and vegetation, real and mythical animals, and horror vacui (fear of empty spaces) of this papercut mark it as a prime example of Eastern European decorative art.

Information may change as a result of ongoing research.

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