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Idol-quickening instructions, Babylonia, 6th century BCE. The “mouth-washing” ritual was a ceremony for transforming a newly manufactured idol into a living deity. The instructions include these…
These gilt-silver finials—which bear the Hebrew calendar year of 5502 (1742)—are considered the earliest dated finials from Iraq. On top of each finial is a miniature ḥamsa, a charm in the shape of a…
The scroll (megillah) of Esther is read out loud on the holiday of Purim. This example, from Baghdad, is hand painted, with an ornate design in which bands of flowers frame the text. It is rolled on a…
