Sound the Shofar - Exhibition, Bible Lands Museum

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Behold an everlasting symbol of Jewish history, faith and tradition as the shofar shares its stories of the tumultuous history of the Jewish people in the new exhibition Sound the Shofar - A Witness to History, at the BLMJ in time for the High Holidays. The exhibition will be on display from September 2011 through February 2012. 

This fascinating exhibition reveals little known facts about the Shofar tracing its use and symbolism through history from the ancient world to modern times in an exceptional display of artifacts and multi-media. A wide variety of ‘Shofarot’ from around the world are displayed, each connected to personal stories, traditions, dreams and aspirations. Together – they tell the story of the Jewish people across generations.ShofarThe exhibition delves into the iconography and function of the shofar from its earliest attestation to the present day. It begins by looking at how a shofar is created, what animal horns can be used for Shofarot and gives a glimpse into the secret process of transforming the raw natural horn into a powerful symbol of Jewish celebration.

The shofar is amongst the earliest musical instruments played by mankind. It is one of the oldest and most recognizable symbols of Judaism, which has been in continual use for more than 3,000 years. Throughout the millennium, the shofar has been a powerful witness to the turbulent history of the Jewish people in both times of rejoicing and triumph, sorrow and devastation as evidenced in many comparative events throughout Jewish history.

The exhibition displays a wide variety of Shofarot and their depictions on a range of objects from ancient times to today. Among the ancient artifacts on display are: a two sided carved synagogue chancel screen depicting a Menorah, Shofar, Lulav and Ethrog from Ashkelon (4th-7th centuries CE); a Jewish Tombstone depicting Menorah, Shofar and Lulav from Caesarea (4rd – 7th centuries CE); a facsimile of the Rothschild Miscellany manuscript depicting a shofar blower in front of Jewish worshipers (15th century CE, Italy); a facsimile from the Mantiba Haggadah depicting the prophet Elijah sounding the shofar to announce the coming of the Messiah (1560 Italy).

Moving onwards through history, on display for the first time in Israel, is a shofar which belonged to Israel Mizrahi who was murdered in the Buchenwald concentration camp during the Holocaust. In 1943 the Mizrahi family was captured and expelled to the Mechelen transit camp, where the Jews of Belgium were imprisoned before being sent to concentration and extermination camps. All their property including the shofar was left in their house. After the war ended, Esther, who survived together with her two children, returned to their home in Antwerp, where a few possessions were recovered including the shofar that belonged to her husband Israel.

Another special shofar on view is one which was blown at the western wall during the British Mandate period. Between the years 1930 – 1947 the Members of Brit Habirionim, Beitar and Etzel would blow the shofar at the western wall at the end of Yom Kippur, in spite of the prohibition imposed by the British Mandate. This exhibition includes an inspiring short documentary film about this courageous group of people who risked their lives to perform the mitzvah of blowing the shofar at the Kotel (produced by Toldot Yisrael and the History Channel).

Also on display for the first time, is the famous Shofar blown by Rabbi Shlomo Goren at the Western Wall on June 7th, 1967 after the liberation and unification of Jerusalem. Exposing this shofar to the public returns the visitors to the emotional moments of June 1967 as echoed in Rabbi Goren’s words:
"my shofar was burnt, and I knew that we were about to liberate the Old City and to reach the Western Wall on the same day. At around 4.00 am I ran to my father-in-law, The “Nazir” Rabbi of blessed memory. I knocked on his door, and when he opened it, I said, ‘I need a shofar. We are going to liberate the Western Wall’. He was overcome with emotion and started crying. He climbed on the table, as his shofar was hidden in one of the cupboards, and gave it to me. I took the shofar and ran once again towards the Rockefeller Museum, and from there I dashed towards the Lions’ Gate."

The exhibition includes artifacts on loan from Museums, Institutions and private collections, many of which have never been previously been on display. 

Voices of the Shofar – In honor of the new exhibition the Museum collected personal stories related to the shofar. The stories will be exhibited as part of the exhibition and on the Museum website. Among the story writers are: Aviv Bushinsky, Avraham Burg, Avri Gilad, Aharoni Noi Boyar, Orna Berry, Eitan Haber, Asa Kasher, Esti Zakheim, Ariella Piksler Alon, Gadi Sukenik, Dudu Fisher, Dan Kaner, Danny Rup, Hadas Shtaif, Rabbi Yisrael Meir Lau, Hanny Nachmeias, Tal Brody, Yossi Himan, Yaakov Cohen, Israel Katorza, Michael Melchior, Miki Goldvaser, Margalit Tzanani, Miriam Perez, Moshe Gaon, Nadav Shragai, Nurit Dabush, Nir Barkat, Nathan Bashevkin, Sophie Tzedakah, Si Heiman, Sivan Rahav Meir, Einat Saruf, Ran Rahav, Shulamit Aloni, Shlomo Gronich.

New for Kids and families – an exciting new booklet filled with riddles and activities prepared especially for the exhibition will be on sale at the Museum entrance. The addition of a special children’s wing will include activities designed to complement the exhibition: prepare holiday greeting cards inspired by Sound the Shofar, a Witness to History; match the different animals with their horns, a "Shofar Telephone," word games and puzzles using the words Shofar and Horn and much more… 

The exhibition is accompanied by a 72 page color catalogue featuring articles by Prof. Shalom Sabar, Dr. Guy Stiebel and Dr. Filip Vukosavović (Curator), addressing topics such as the anatomy of Bovidae horns, as well as covering the history of the shofar and its uses from its Mesopotamian origins in the 3rd millennium BCE to modern times.