Rubens Collection of Jewish Costumes Adds Historical Data on Many Customs
Alfred Rubens makes a re-
markable contribution to-
ward retention of significant
records of great Jewish his-
torical value with his collec-
tion of data about Jewish
costumes, and his having pre-
served the objects of his
hobby.
From his youth — ne was
born in London in 1903 —
Rubens began collecting
drawings, prints, actual ob-
jects, relating to Jews
throughout history. He has
already published several
works dealing with "Anglo-
Jewish Portraits" and Jew-
ish Iconography, and perhaps
the best work of its kind on
the subject is his "A History
of Jewish Costume," which
has just been issued by
Crown in a new and enlarged
edition.
It is a noteworthy work
for many reasons. It repro-
duces the costumes of ko-
hanim. It describes dress
regulations that were pre-
scribed for Jews by the
church and by rulers who
dominated over them in pe-
riods of oppression. There-
fore it was natural to include
a reproduction of the "Jude"
yellow badge that was im-
posed upon Jews by the
Nazis.
(custom) restricted almost
covered head.
"The rigid rules embodied entirely to Jews from East-
in the Shulhan Arukh requir- ern Europe has developed
ing the head to be covered into a moral obligation and
on all occasions probably in time the skull-cap is likely
grew up during medieval to become as essential a part
times following the imposition of t h e ordinary Orthodox
of a special form of hat Jew's wardrobe as is the
which Jews were obliged to 'caftan' for the Hasid."
Scenes in ghettos, costumes
wear w h e n e v e r they ap-
peared in public and it is in Jerusalem, dress resulting
clear that there is no religi- from restrictive laws; cos-
ous significance in what was tumes in Western countries
undoubtedly a purely regional and especially those resulting
custom. The situation was from the attainment of. eman-
summed up by Lauterbach cipation, rabbinical robes,
and Israel Abrahams: 'The the dress adopted by Jews in
oriental c o d e of manners Poland, scores of reproduc-
showed respect by covering tions t h a t will encourage
the head and uncovering the study of traditions and his-
feet in exact contradiction to torical developments in many
the prevailing c u s t o m of lands — these are some of
Europe. The practice of cov- the factors in this remark-
ering the head when entering ably well compiled book.
a synagogue and when recit-
Some of the photographs
ing prayers or performing are genuine treasures. There
any other religious ceremony are 123 full-color illustrations
is not based upon any tal- and 141 black and white pic-
mudic law and cannot be tures. There are photos of
supported by any express the Sabbath and holiday ob-
statement in the Talmud.'
servances. A 1 1 aspects of
"During the past 50 years Jewish life are touched upon
the custom among Western in this work of art that re-
Jews of wearing a head cov- sults from an able collector's
ering as a sign of Orthodoxy hobby. It is a work of tribute
has noticeably grown. What to its author-compiler, Alfred
was originally a 'minhag' Rubens.
.Nl•ttator
:0 )4.
Int
Pita•ititts*. 1.ngraving. Ruben, (ii) 172S.
AlthouHl dc,t - ribed as .1 Padua'', he speaks
Yiddish. I IC wears the Jewish barrette.
(k
Oriental rabbinical tires,. 1839
(.2olter) Chief Priest of the 1,raelites, Cahittt(i. Et(Intig.
Ruben, (i) 71. Although a native elf Aleppo. he rank‘,
262
as
.1
Baghdad'
..111d Wear, their tr.tclitiun.rl
„tunic
Reproductions from Alfred Rubens' History of Jewish Costume'
Israel's Hospital Shortage
By Susan Fromberg Schaeffer
It is a volume that not only
until the health ministry un-
reproduces every conceivable
By UZI BENZIMAN
derstood that this policy was
Jewish costume in the
JTA Jerusalem Correspondent
(Copyright 1973, JTA, Inc.)
counter-productive and the
millenia of Jewish life: it
Israel suffers from a severe government decided to build
We immediately are made and kept from._ her mother,
also deals with the origins
Elizabeth Kamen reminds
of many of the costumes, and you of those wonderful string aware, in the brief prologue, who always saw to it that shortage of hospitals. Occu- solid and concentrated hos-
describes their distinctive and spool contraptions the The Old Country, that Eliza- Elizabeth was in bed by pancy at most hospitals al- pitals. But the planning proc-
ways hovers around the 100
features.
Chinese acrobats work so beth's todays were shaped seven. She would be so im- per cent mark. Newspapers ess took many years and
magically — soaring, falling, by the yesterdays of her pressed with how late she are full of lurid accounts de- building was delayed. In his
Indeed, so thorough is Ru- spinning off in one direction, grandparents and great• was getting to stay up, with
last report, the state comp-
bens in his hobby which has then the other, but always, grandparents who made the how lucky she was to have scribing overcrowded condi- troller described the many
become such a great asset amazingly, hanging in there. exodus from Russia.
milk with a whole spoon of tions. The health ministry is postponements which had oc-
in Jewish life that he also
coffee in it, that she would under heavy criticism and curred in the erection of
Throughout the novel in
delves into religious back-
The heroine of Susan From-
go straight to bed the minute is blamed for lack of fore- several hospitals.
grounds in order fully to berg Schaeffer's first novel the prose style that betray the last Heigh-ho, Silver! sight and poor performance.
In 1959, the health minis-
In 1948, the young govern-
evaluate the objects under "Falling" (Macmillan) is a the author's gift for poetry, sounded through the mesh
his scrutiny. He has not for- child of our times, yet she we are brought back time mouth of the set. It was not ment of Israel inherited sev- try decided to build a new
and again to Elizabeth the
eral military camps from the hospital at Hadera-40 kilo-
gotten the yarmulka, and he
child, and we, too, are made until Elizabeth was a gradu- British and converted them meters north of Tel Aviv—
therefore deals at length with
ate student that she realized
but only in 1963 was plan-
to remember.
the rules for head covering.
`The Lone Ranger,' now a into hospitals with the in-
Thus, his "History of Jewish
Out of the dialogues with television program, was on tention of providing medical ning completed. Even then
Costume" becomes instruc-
the heroine's nutty circle of at seven, and realized with a services for everybody. Ac- the hospital was not built.
Plans were changed several
tive when it describes the
friends and out of her own shock that 'The Lone Ranger' cording to this unique ideol- times. Now the health min-
head covering, stating:
disorganized attempts to had always been on at seven, ogy, hospitals were to be istry estimates that the hos-
make sense of the mishmash that her father had told her "open houses" where fami- pital will be opened in 1977;
"In the Bible no particular
of life, every reader will pick it was on at 11:30, and she lies from different social another hospital to be com-
importance seems to have
his own favorite passages. had never stayed up until strata could meet and mix pleted after a delay of eight
attached to the covering of
around a common cause. Ten
Here's ours:
the head except for the
twelve in her whole Brook- years later, the health minis- years; a third to be opened
"Before
her
grandmother
priests and even they only
lyn life. When she realized
in 1978 instead of in 1972.
came (to live with them), her this, she was filled with a try began to pay the price
did so when performing their
for
this
policy.
The health ministry's in-
night-
mother would leave for
priestly duties. The Mishna
gentle radiance, a forgiveness
efficiency
has led to a severe
In
the
course
of
time,
the
school
every
Wednesday
takes it for granted that men
far the whole adult world, a semi-permanent structures shortage of hospital beds.
her
father
would
night,
and
go Ibare-headed and o n1 y
beneficence which she would began to disintegrate_ and The ratio between the num-
baby-sit, and he would let not have thought possible."
women and children cover
the government was forced ber of hospital beds and the
her stay up until 11:30 to
their heads. In the Dura Syn-
to grant large sums to reno- population in Israel is 7.84
Frorrtberg
Schaeffer
Susan
listen
to
The
Lone
Ranger.'
agogue frescoes all the men
SUSAN SCHAEFFER
This was a secret they shared has written a treasure.—C. D. vate them. Years passed beds per 1,000 persons.
except for the High Priest
never quite lets go of the
are shown bare-headed.
generations that went before
"On the other hand one of —and that is reassuring.
the essential garments men- When we most fear What will
tioned in the Talmud is the become of the Jewish Mot-
`kovha sheberosho' (head her?, Elizabeth is there to
covering) and the benedic- tell us: she will survive, in
tion was recited when it was one form or another-
donned: 'Blessed is He who
crowns Israel with glory.'
Susan Fromberg Schaeffer
1-4;4167".
2.1117 r im w,
r•:err•v;:: Vr3
-3 '3,- r3.11
Like the talit and tefilin a has created a distracting,
•nnn
'nim / nip 1
T0 ,1.7,1
,111. 01 11. rat 7.1117ri IT
,3•3trIn /
1r-1, rm.. wry
VOL. XXX / 7729 / WAY 16. 1947 / 111111
"N 1 lt
0 -1.4 ,n
.711,
am. ,.
••••, roman
head covering was a privil- delicious character in Eliza-
ege limited to scribes, •har- beth. Despite an apparent dis-
isees and rabbis.
regard for the traditional
"Rabbi Isaac ben Moses of values, she spends a good
Mln «11n ri-rr '71a'n trann 57171 arrrainn "On TV=
rYltri ntrrnirl rit,rn 11-ac tam nix=
Vienna (1200-1270) placed it number of her rational hours
on record that French rabbis worrying about her lack of
',arm
ms1717rrniv1: rnzrr twznt — .n1 ,172: :TV:71 nn:n - rrirat
in his time uttered the bene- convention. She desperately
Inn mr-m3, vrm %/Irv , rnpn .nrIrm
nrnt
1;7;
Tr.
s....n
Inman
CrTar0
!It
nu-1antpm Vr1t7 7r7O Op '21,
ruc,
Irlir•rwv
dictions bare-headed. Rabbi wants to get married (though
.P71
•r:, nrivra: Tann
irtv* r2111
Tn:
not
above
"trying
it
out"
hrnr-rata Mrm
Isserlein, a noted 15th Cen-
tury rabbi, expressed the first) and when she finally
the Independence of the people in its own land and
view that there was no ex- does, you want to stand' up The head.ines of "Haaretz" of Sunday May 16,
plicit prohibition against and cheer.
the estabiishment of a temporary government was
1948: "THE VISION OF THE AGES BECOMES
Jews taking an oath bare-
proclaimed.
Elizabeth rebells against
REALITY—THE STATE OF ISRAEL HAS RISEN."
headed, and Solomon Lurya parents who not only don't
The United States has recognized the State—The
(1510-1583), a great rabbinic understand her, they do a
recognition by the Soviet Union and the States
authority, expressly stated fairly creditable job of turn- In the presence of the National Council and of an
of the Slavic Block is expected.
that he knew of no prohibi- ing her into a shrink's dream. invited public. and with the singing of "Hatikvah,"
tion against praying with un.- But her psychiatrist, a wise
and witty foil for Elizabeth's
Special Feature Prepared by Tarbuth Foundation
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS own sharp humor, helps her
for the Advancement of Hebrew Culture
to grow up.
48—Friday, July 27, 1973
Heroine to Remember in 'Falling'
As Israel Celebrates Its 25th Anniversary
A FRONT PAGE OF HISTORY
pnrr7.
-`-
e .. .
rindrrt11.3
P.
am
' 7,7•
■
mnp
rrs -wan
inTri rznrIn
tlf3Cel
"tan