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From the exhibition "Let There Be Light - Oil-Lamps form the Holy Land," at the Bible Lands Museum, Jerusalem
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Darom lamp with a basket of figs and palm trees. Mold made, from the first century CE to the first half of the second century CE. From the exhibition "Let There Be Light - Oil-Lamps form the Holy Land," at the Bible Lands Museum, Jerusalem (Photo: Yoram Lehmann)
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Lantern, wheel-made, Tenth century CE (Photo: Alon Zaslansky)
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Darom lamp with an olive tree branch. Mold made, from the first century CE to the first half of the second century CE. From the exhibition "Let There Be Light - Oil-Lamps form the Holy Land," at the Bible Lands Museum, Jerusalem (Photo: Yoram Lehmann)
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| By israelinsider staff December 12, 2004 |
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| Darom lamp decorated with amphora and grape vine. Mold-made, orange clay, from the first century CE to the first half of the second century CE. From the exhibition "Let There Be Light - Oil-Lamps form the Holy Land," at the Bible Lands Museum, Jerusalem (Photo: Yoram Lehmann) |
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Oil is at the center of the Hanukka holiday. The story goes that a small amount of oil kept the Temple's eternal flame alight for a miraculous eight days. This year, during the Jewish festival of light, a diverse and well-presented collection of oil lamps is on display at the Bible Lands Museum in Jerusalem.
The exhibition, "Let There Be Light," sheds new light on the pure and simple beauty of these essential household appliances. It traces the development of oil-lamps over three millennia, from their most primitive and simplistic form, to those more elaborately designed and decorated.
The ancient lamps -- decorated with Jewish, Christian, Samaritan and Islamic designs -- were used in the daily lives and religious rituals of all cultures in the Holy Land.
The lamps open a window to the shared history of Mideast peoples. Simple and utilitarian in their form, these lamps were of great importance as the only source of light in the dark. Illuminating homes, temples, synagogues, churches and mosques, their symbolic motifs reflect the cultures and religions of the Holy Land and its neighboring regions.
The most interesting group of lamps in the exhibition are the "Darom lamps," named for where they were made, in the southern part of Judea. The Jewish ornamentation on these lamps includes the Temple facade, the Menorah and the Seven Species symbolizing the Land of Israel (wheat, barley, grape, fig, pomegranate, olive and date).
Among the highlights of the exhibition is an Islamic lantern with an arched opening within which sat a small oil-lamp, which was an essential type of lantern for use outdoors in the dark, especially important as there were no street lights or other forms of illumination, except for the very wealthy.
Also on display is a rare Herodian ring-shaped sanctuary lamp, with a center tower, with square and triangular openings. Such lamps were hung from the ceiling in Hellenistic and Roman temples. Similar lamps were found at Masada.
Let There Be Light displays approximately 100 oil-lamps and is enhanced with selected artifacts that enrich the motifs and symbolism portrayed.
On loan from the private collections of Ruth and Stephen Adler and Nira and Kenneth Abramowitz, the exhibition was made possible with their generosity and with the support of Genevieve and David Hendin, Diane and Bill Stern and NGN Capital.
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