#ketubbah

[estera-shirin]

Ketubbah from Isfahan, ca. 1818

Ketubbah from Isfahan, then Persian Empire, now Iran. Made in the year 5578, or 1818 in the Gregorian calendar.

From the Jewish Museum: "Ketubbot (marriage contracts) produced in the Near East are strongly influenced by Islamic art in their lack of figurative decoration. Persia was the most important center of ketubbah illumination in the Islamic world. A popular symbol of Persia, the motif of the lions in front of the rising sun featured on this ketubbah reflects the national pride of the Jews of Isfahan, who believed they were the oldest Jewish community in the country.

Bride: Rivka, daughter of David Groom: Abba, son of Asher Witnesses: Yitzhak son of Yaakov, Yeshu’a son of Shmuel, and Rahamin Binyamin"

[adiradirim]

Ketubbah with depiction of the banks of the Bosphorus, Istanbul, 1853. Handwritten on paper; ink, gouache, and gold powder

[writer-at-the-table]

Marriage Contract by Ben Shahn, 1961, Ink, watercolor, paint, and graphite on paper

Most decorated Jewish marriage contracts use ornamental motifs as framing devices for their written Aramaic text. Ben Shahn's Ketubbah is a marked departure from this model. In the superb execution of this document, the artist has integrated floral and foliate decorations within his lyrical Hebrew calligraphy, the predominant design element.

While Shahn's artistic personality emerged through the religious themes in his illustrations for the 1931 Haggadah for Passover, he would not return to such subjects for many years. The artist spent most of the 1930s and 1940s as a social realist painter. Along with so many other painters and sculptors during those difficult years, Shahn felt that art could help right the inequities of society. His terse visual commentaries on such topical subjects as the Sacco and Vanzetti case, Nazism, poverty, and labor problems brought him great recognition as both a humanitarian and an artist. It was after World War II that he turned inward through what has been called his transition from social to personal realism. During this period he incorporated allegory and religious and philosophical symbolism in his work, often based on his own cultural heritage.

Shahn's updating of the traditional ketubbah results from his changing stylistic and subjective concerns. He became fascinated with letters, both Hebrew and English, which became essential elements in his work. This calligraphic preoccupation led to his 1954 illustrations for The Alphabet of Creation, a book which related a parable of the origin of the Hebrew alphabet. His own combination of these twenty-two letters become a personal stamp and appears on most of his prints and drawings after 1960, including this Ketubbah.

Like the butterfly stamp of James Whistler and the Japonist monogram of Toulouse-Lautrec, this symbol shows Shahn's stylistic inspiration as coming from outside mainstream Western culture. The expressive style of Shahn's Hebrew characters changes with the meaning of each theme he depicts. For this Ketubbah, which is presented at the joyous celebration of marriage, he develops a commanding but elegant Hebrew appropriate to the legal nature of the document and the solemnity of the moment-a calligraphy markedly different from the flame-like evanescences in his tribute to the Feast of Lights, Hanukkah. As had been the custom of Hebrew scribes throughout the ages, Shahn adds eccentric elements to certain letters. Most notable here is the oft-repeated, stylized Star of David.

Shahn's meandering floral and foliate forms refer to Psalm 128:3, a common visual allusion in Jewish marriage contracts: "Thy wife is a fruitful vine in the midst of thy house, thy children are as young olive trees set around thy table." (Kleeblatt, Norman L., and Vivian B. Mann. TREASURES OF THE JEWISH MUSEUM. New York: Universe Books, 1986, pp. 192-193.)

[gliklofhameln]

Ketubbah with birds from Ernakulam, Cochin, India, 1909

Groom: Menahem, son of Rabbi Elijah. Bride: Rebekah, daughter of Rabbi Elijah.

[bobemajses]

Jewish marriage contract (ketubbah), Yazd, Iran, 1837

[jouissanceangel]

Earliest known American Ketubbah (Jewish wedding contract), and sole known illustrated 18th century American Ketubbah, dated 2 Sivan, 5511 (May 15, 1751). Celebrating the wedding of Shalva bas Solomon (Sloe Meyers) and Hayim ben Moshe haLevi (Hayman Levy). They were members of New York’s only synagogue, Kehilah She’arit Israel (Congregation Remnant of Israel), which is the oldest Jewish congregation in North America (established 1654).

[reachingrachnius]

Ketubbah. Isfahan, 1881

[fablesandgables]

Ketubbah - Unknown Florentine Artist, 1699 

Ink on shell gold parchment (24 3/4 x 18 3/4 in.; 629 x 476 mm)

This is the earliest extant decorated ketubbah--a Jewish pre-marriage wedding contract-- from Florence. It celebrates the wedding of Joshua ben Moses Prato and Seda bat Joshua Balanes in Florence on Wednesday, 3 Adar II 5459 (March 4, 1699).

The seventeenth century witnessed the rise of ketubbah decoration in cities throughout Italy, and the present document is the earliest known example of a decorated marriage contract from Florence. Nearly the entire surface of the parchment is embellished with shell gold and a pale green wash, and concentric circles inscribed with biblical verses and blessings enframe the text.

It was customary in ketubbot from other Italian cities such as Venice and Padua to include a depiction of Jerusalem above the text. This is a direct allusion to the biblical verse which mandates that one should “keep Jerusalem in memory even at [one’s] happiest hour” (Ps. 137:6). In this ketubbah, the same result is achieved by the insertion of the word “Jerusalem,” boldly written in monumental Ashkenazic calligraphy, under the elegantly scalloped upper border. [x]

[darkhei-noam]

This ketubbah was a first for me: the first ketubbah that I've hand-delivered in Minneapolis! And another first: in specifying the place, this couple chose to include a land acknowledgement: "here, on the occupied traditional land of the Dakota and Anishinaabe people, now known as Minneapolis." Pretty sure this is the first time anyone has ever written Anishinaabe on a ketubbah, too, but I'd be happy to be proven wrong! 😂 Do you know whose land you live on? Check out native-land.ca to find out!

[useless-jewishfacts]

A Magnificent Decorated Ketubbah , Livorno, Tuscany, 1698.

“This early and exceedingly rare marriage contract from the port city of Livorno is ornamented with a sumptuous array of decorative elements. Above the text, a panoramic view of the walled city of Jerusalem is surrounded by six small medallions illustrating verses from Psalm 128 traditionally sung at Italian weddings. Bordering the text are twenty-four elaborate vignettes. Twelve of these feature emblems, each of which signifies one of the twelve tribes of Israel; each of these emblems is, in turn, coupled with a corresponding zodiac sign. These begin directly above the first word of the text with Aries / Issachar and proceed counter-clockwise. The remaining twelve scenes depict the four Aristotelian elements (Water, Earth, Wind and Fire), as well as the four seasons of the year and the four senses (Taste, Sight, Smell and Hearing). Dr. Shalom Sabar has shown how this multifaceted imagery, incorporating the earliest pairing in Jewish art of the emblems of the twelve tribes with the signs of the zodiac, demonstrates a highly sophisticated view of the world as well as an in-depth knowledge of Jewish sources.”

[thejewishmuseum]

For Black History Month, we invited writer Antwaun Sargent to explore works of art in the Jewish Museum Collection that celebrate the intersection of the black and Jewish experience. Nigerian artist ruby onyinyechi amanze’s ketubbah (marriage contract) newly commissioned for Scenes from the Collection, imagines a racially-ambiguous couple surrounded by symbols of constellations that integrate the ethos of the ketubbah and black identity. 

[thejewitches]

From the Jewish Museum, originally from Vercelli (Italy), Date:1776

Berger, Maurice et al. MASTERWORKS OF THE JEWISH MUSEUM. New York: The Jewish Museum, 2004, pp. 120-121, writes, “In Italy, ketubbot were commissioned by all Jews, including Sephardi, Ashkenazi, Levantine (from the eastern Mediterranean), and Italian- descendants of the old Roman community. Written on parchment, they usually featured lavish decoration, inspired by both Jewish and Christian art. For instance, the use of an archway to frame the text, as seen in this fine example from Vercelli, can be traced to the title pages of Hebrew printed books- northern Italy was a main center of Hebrew printing-but may also be linked to local architecture or sculpture. Figurative representation was also common in Italian ketubbot, although for centuries, most Jews had shied away from it because of their stern interpretation of the biblical prohibition against graven images. The inclusion of human figures, some allegorical and others portraying biblical or genre scenes, reflects a high degree of acculturation.

Other popular motifs in decorated Italian ketubbot include the signs of the zodiac and, as seen here, the emblems of the two families. The adoption of unofficial coats of arms was widespread among wealthy Italian Jews, in imitation of the practices of the local nobility Most ketubbot include a single shield, containing the insignia for both families, or just that of the groom, whose family usually commissioned the contract because he was obligated to furnish the bride-Eleonora- with a ketubboh. This example, however, features two separate emblems, possibly because the bride belonged to a family of prominent scholars, including Benjamin Segrè of Vercelli, who might have been her father. The coat of arms for the Segre family-a rampant lion facing right with a Star of David-is featured at the center of the lower border. No less distinguished was the Treves family, to which the groom-Mordecai, son of Azriel Treves- belonged. Their emblem-a rampant lion to the right of an apple tree-appears above the text at center, a prominent location, for the groom's family likely commissioned the document. Issued in Vercelli, this ketubbah differs from other extant examples from the same Piedmontese city, characterized by an arcuated shape at bottom and a floral border. Although some Italian contracts depict the bride and groom, very few represent the wedding party-shown here in lavish costumes and hairdos-or the attendant musicians. Flirtatious interactions between various couples add a picaresque note, including a distinguished man with a cane peering through his spyglass at a lady at a window, at the upper right. A later example from Pesaro, dated 1853, at the Israel Museum ('79/339), also features a gathering of musicians and elegantly dressed couples, but the figures there were cut out from printed sources, painted, and pasted onto the parchment, instead of finely rendered, as seen here. The extravagance of examples such as this one might have prompted Italian rabbis to repeatedly enact laws limiting the amount of money that could be spent on the decoration of a marriage contract. The secular nature of this ketubboh's decorative program, with figures of a musician and a young man elegantly dressed (perhaps a rendering of the groom?) in the niches often reserved for depictions of Moses and Aaron, indicates that it might have been the work of a Christian artist. Many other Italian examples, however, display a close relationship between text and image, with depictions of biblical scenes featuring heroes whose names were borne by the groom, the bride, or their fathers, with extensive use of Hebrew texts, attesting that they were decorated either by Jewish artists or by Christian makers under the strong guidance of their Jewish patrons.”

[easterneuropeancrafts]

Jewish marriage contract. Vidin, Bulgaria. Mid-19th - Early 20th century.

“Although the Jewish community in Vidin has existed since the 6th century, very few decorated marriage contracts are extant from this town; the few that remain all date to the 19th century and both hand-decorated and printed borders were used. As is customary with ketubbot from this region, the text is set within a colorful double archway and divided into three sections: the ketubbah, the tena’im, and below, a list of the dowry. The decoration found on ketubbot from Bulgaria is primarily floral with the addition of putti and lions enlivening the document.” 

Sotheby’s

[gliklofhameln]

Ketubbah from Casale Monferrato, 1772

Celebrating the marriage of Meir ben Johanan Solomon (known as Jonah Zalman) and Zipporah bat Simeon Hayyim Levi Morello on Friday, 1 Adar II 5532 (March 6, 1772).

This exquisitely decorated marriage contract records the wedding of members of two of the most important families in the Piedmontese town of Casale Monferrato. The groom, Emilio Meir Vitta Zalman (1756-1820), was the scion of a prominent family of landowners and bankers. He was a lay member of Napoleon’s Sanhedrin, and his son, Giuseppe Raffaele Vitta, was made a baron in 1855 for his contribution to the nation in assisting soldiers wounded in the Crimean War. 

The document is lavishly decorated with a richly colored floral border within which cupids frolic. The family emblems of the groom and bride adorn the ketubbah and appear in ovals at the top right and left of the document. The tapered shape of the parchment’s lower portion is a characteristic feature of ketubbot from Casale Monferrato and gives the document the appearance of a shield. The small but active Italian Jewish community of Casale Monferrato is well known for its synagogue, an architectural jewel of baroque magnificence, as well as for the production of beautiful ceremonial objects. Surprisingly, however, fewer than a dozen decorated ketubbot from seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Casale Monferrato survive, and the present marriage contract is a rare, splendid example of the manner in which the Jews of Piedmont would celebrate their joyous occasions.

[girlactionfigure]

Ketoubbah for Shavuot - Italy, 17th century This ketubbah celebrates the symbolic union between HM, the husband, and the people of Israel, the wife. This spiritual marriage takes place on the day of Shavuot, and the witnesses are the Heavens and the Earth.

[apenitentialprayer]

Apostasy as Bargaining Tool

If, for Christian authorities across Western Europe, Jewish conversions to Christianity constituted a religious victory, for Jews, they represented a religious defeat. [...] On account of these considerations, whereas Christian authorities sought to encourage Jewish conversion to Christianity, Jews north and south of the Pyrenees went to great lengths to prevent it. [...] Capitalizing on the Jewish community's aversion to apostasy, Jews sometimes threatened to convert to Christianity if their demands were not met. Exempla from the thirteenth-century German pietistic work Sefer Hasidim describe young men using the threat of apostasy to get away with, or at least persist in, immoral behavior. In thirteenth-century Regensburg, a woman who “rebelled against her husband” and was warned that she might lose her ketubbah and dowry and be forced to wait many years for her divorce threatened to “go live among the gentiles.” Similarly, in Manosque, Provence, at the turn of the fourteenth century, a Jewish woman named Marionetta, whose husband was in the habit of hitting her so hard “that the whole neighborhood would gather in horror,” threatened to go “live with the gentiles” if she were not granted a divorce. On occasion, the threat of apostasy was effective. For example, at the turn of the thirteenth century in Aragon, a Jewish mother convinced the Jewish political and spiritual leader of Barcelona, Rabbi Yom Tov ben Avraham Ishbili (1250-1330, Ritva), to annul the decree of excommunication that he had issued against her son, Avraham ben Yosef ben Plas. Avraham had sneaked into the synagogue in Daroca “one night, when everyone else was asleep in their beds,” and broken the doors of the ark in order to steal the “silver apples that sat on top of the holy Torah scroll.” As a result, he was to be banished from Daroca and prohibited from marrying or trading with any Jew from Daroca for five years. His mother explained that, if excommunicated, Avraham would “be tempted into idol worship,” that is, he would convert to Christianity. Ritva agreed to annul the decree so that this young man might “return in repentance and not go out to a bad culture.”

- Paola Tartakoff (“Testing Boundaries: Jewish Conversion and Cultural Fluidity in Medieval Europe, c. 1200-1391″)