An Important Pair of Early Dutch Silver Torah Finials, Maker's Mark H, Amsterdam, 1659

Listed in Jay Weinstein, A Collector's Guide to Judaica, London: Thames & Hudson, 1985, p.87, fig.90, as unmarked, probably Amsterdam, c.1700.

Exhibited New York, 1990: The Sephardic Journey, 1492-1992, Yeshiva University Museum, November 13, 1990 – December 31, 1992, pp.105 and 329, no. 539 (illus).

These rare survivals belong to the first generation of this popular model of “auricular tower” Torah Finial. The maker's mark is no.96, p.26 in Elias Voet Jr., Merken van Amsterdamsche Goud-en-Zilversmeden, where the silversmith is noted for "siertorens" (Torah finials).

The design is a harmonious combination of two elements. The lower bodies are composed of six auricular cartouches. The auricular, or lobate style (Kwabstijl in Dutch) became popular in Northern Europe in the early 17^th century; its flowing curves recalled the human ear, hence the name. In the 1630s French print sources and the work of Amsterdam silversmith Johannes Lutma popularized the style beyond its original Courtly origins.

The upper bodies are formed as architectural cupolas; the faceted sides and domed center may have been intended to evoke the octagonal Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem, and through it Solomon’s original Temple. There is also a nod to the towers of 17^th century Dutch architecture, both religious on churches and secular on town halls; many are topped by an openwork shape as seen here, a baluster shape that evokes both Eastern “onion” domes and tulip bulbs; surviving examples include the Zuidertoren, Amsterdam (1606-14), and the church tower at Nieuwkoop (1627).

The earliest known examples of this model of Torah Finial are Amsterdam, 1641 (no maker given), preserved in the collection of the Portuguese Jewish Community in Amsterdam (see Julie-Marthe Cohen, “The Inventory of Ceremonial Objects of the Portuguese Jewish Community of Amsterdam of 1640” in Studio Rosenthaliana, 2004, vol. 37, fig. 9, p. 237). Another pair by Jan van de Velde, Amsterdam, 1650, was formerly in the Gross family collection, Israel. Together with the offered pair of 1659, these three early Amsterdam pairs are almost identical, except for crown finials on the first listed and bud finials on the second two.

A pair of this model made in Rotterdam, 1649 (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston) has slight variations in the piercing and chasing, and pitcher and bud finials. It rounds out the first generation of the “auricular tower” model. In the 1670s and 1680s, Jurgen Richels in Hamburg was creating a version, where crowns top the architectural cupola (ex Sassoon collection and also Museum of Fine Arts, Boston), and by the 1690s Pieter van Hoven was replicating the design. It would remain popular through the 18^th century, but on the earliest examples the sophisticated fusion of the fashionable auricular style with contemporary architecture – and a hint of Solomon’s Temple – is most evident.