Name/Title
Sword-shaped amuletsEntry/Object ID
K_0688Tags
storageDescription
1. Amulet, engraved on both sides, with Hebrew names of angels (including those that guard against the female demon Lilith), initials of verses, including "Ben Porat Yosef" (Jacob's biblical blessing to Joseph [Deut. 49:22], used against the Evil Eye), and a Hebrew inscription referring to defensive "boundaries and fences" to protect "the bearer of this amulet." 2. Amulet, engraved on one side only, with names of God, names of angels, and an inscripition to establish protective boundaries for "the bearer of this amulet." Both amulets have holes at their ends, to enable them to be sewn onto garments. In the exhibition catalogue "Jews of Kurdistan" (Feuchtwanger collection, items 817-18), it is pointed out that amulets such as these would be sewn onto hats or onto shoulders of garments, as protections specifically for a child whose siblings had passed away.Made/Created
Place
* Untyped Place
Iraqi Kurdistan or Iran, Iraqi Kurdistan, IraqContinent
AsiaRegion
Middle EastCountry
IranNotes
Date made: late 19th century/early 20th centuryDimensions
Dimension Notes
9.5cm l , 8.5cm lMaterial
Silver, cast and engraved
