Posted by on Apr 28, 2013 in Jewish Ritual Art, News, Public Art | 0 comments

A happy byproduct the explosion of interest in Jewish ritual arts over the last 30 years is people have been delving deep and ‘recovering’ knowledge of objects and ceremonies have gathered generations of dust in many American Jewish communities. The Beyn Gavra is one such object.  Though many people are familiar with the custom of respectfully covering the Torah scroll with a decorative cloth or it’s mantle during lulls between readings, most people are unfamiliar with the name of covering. The Beyn Gavra has recently been embraced as another opportunity for congregations to involve in act of “hiddur mitzvah,” the enhancement of ritual observance by making it beautiful.

Here is needlepoint Beyn Gavra designed for synagogue. It was crafted by several different needleworkers working on small looms. When completed, the segments were professionally assembled. I sewed a sleeve on back it served as focal object hung next the ark not use over the Torah scroll. I painted the needlepoint scrim, counting the holes so that the designs on all four sides lined up exactly when finished and assembled.

Sadly, this piece was lost in accidental fire at destroyed the synagogue. Lost, too, were the needlepoint doors of ark and these 5 Torah mantles, each of which I had designed. One of the remarkable stories that came for event is mantles, heavily stitched in wool and perle cotton and back with heavy velvet, took the brunt of heat, water, and soot that destroyed the ark, and served to protect that scrolls, which were restored after the fire.

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