Tell Me WhY
NI)/Ce ov pc I
Just how cid 411. ‘11011
the Magen David come to be a
Jewish symbol, anyway?
Elizabeth Applebaum
lAppleTree Editor
la
•
its great seal. Other sources claim
that the star, which consists of two
triangles or pyramids, inverted, rep-
resented an ancient Egyptian sun
god. The inverted triangles, or pyra-
mids, represented the good and evil
nature of this pagan god — down
for bad and up for good. This
sounds similar to the serpent's claim
of God to Eve in Genesis.
The Russian sugar industry would
not have gotten started, however,
without the help of a Jew, Izrail Brod-
Q: Just the other day, I was filling
sky (1823-88). Brodsky was one of
my coffee with spoonfuls of that
the few financiers in Russia who
most delicious substance, sugar. As I
believed in the commercial viability o f
— From R.W.,
I was preparing to take my first sip,
the sugar beet. His loans to the
a reader in Waukegan, III.
in walks my son who tells me that it
Bobrinskys laid the groundwork of
A: As you note, various theories
I was thanks to a Russian Jew, that
modern sugar-beet production. With
exist as to when the star began
table sugar became accessible to
Brodsky's help, the Bobrinskys' sugar
appearing and why it was initially
I much of the world. Is that true, Tell
plants in Kiev province were among
1 designed. There's a good reason for
Me Why?
the largest in Europe. Sugar finally
this: No one can say for certain who
A: Let me be the first to say it: your
became a common and affordable
i created the very first six-pointed star,
son is one smart kid. Here's the story.
food.
which has been in use, by various cul-
: Until the 1300s, table sugar was a
Brodsky, and later his sons, Lazar
tures, for thousands of years.
luxury in the western world. Sugar
and Lev, managed and leased sugar
Here's what we do know about the
cane, a giant grass native to south-
mills and built mills of their own. Brod-
star: The first documented proof of its
least Asia, had been gradually plant- I sky improved production methods and
existence, so to speak, was during
ed throughout the tropics. Among
set into place an elaborate system for
the Bronze Age, when various peo-
1 sugar's greatest fans were Europeans,
marketing sugar both in Russia and for
ples throughout the world (ranging
though they were unable to grow it
export. By 1872, one quarter of the
from Mesopotamia to Britain) were
Ion European soil. They turned instead
total sugar production in Russia was in
using the star, probably as a magic
to the Caribbean Islands. With their
Jewish hands, mainly in plants owned
symbol. There are a few examples of
rich, moist soil, high temperatures,
1 by the Brodsky family. It remained so
its use by Jews around this time for
strong sunlight and frequent showers,
until the Bolshevik takeover in 1917.
decorative purposes, not with a partic-
the islands were ideal for growing
,•
ular Jewish relevance.
sugar cane. Importing it, however,
Q: What is the true origin of the
The star was popular throughout the
was an expensive venture.
1 Jewish star, more popularly called
Middle Ages, especially among royal-
Then in 1747, a French scientist dis-
the Star of David? According to
ty and government officials. Jews and
covered that the sugar in beet juice
some historical sources, this star has
gentiles alike used it in Spain, France,
was the same as that in cane. Interest 1 i is roots in pagan religion, going
Germany and Denmark. The hexa-
in the sugar beet was intense, espe-
back to ancient Chaldea. This star
gram was carved on synagogues
cially after scientists found that beets
also resembles the star above the
and on Hebrew manuscripts (as an
grow well in the same soils where
eagle on the back of the U.S. dollar
amulet), but also appeared as a
grain flourishes. One of the richest
bill. That star, according to some
design on churches.
grain-growing regions in Europe is
sources, represented the ancient
It's impossible to say exactly when
Ukraine. There, the Bobrinsky family
Roman god Saturn, who gave his
the Jewish community began to con-
of Russian counts and major landown-
power to the eagle, which repre-
sider the six-pointed star a "Magen
ers became pioneer promoters of the
sented the Roman Empire. The Unit-
David" (Shield of David). But most
• sugar beet.
I ed States adopted these symbols on
scholars point to a 12th-century book
on Jewish magic as the key source.
This text actually focused on the
1 names of God (not King David),
which appeared on a protective -
amulet that was said to have been
used by associates of Judah Mac-
, cabee. After publication of this book,
the star became a popular, and a reli-
giously significant symbol, within the
Jewish community — though no one
remembers why it became associated
with King David specifically.
The first official use of the six-pointed
1 star as a Jewish symbol was in 1354.
King Charles IV granted the Jewish
community of Prague the right to bear
its
i own flag, which depicted a hexa-
gram. Thereafter, its use spread
throughout European Jewish communi-
ties
It became most popular in the 19th
I century as the "official" symbol of
Judaism, appearing on almost every
synagogue and on the seals and let-
terheads of Jewish organizations
worldwide. Its status was especially
enhanced in 1822, after the Roth-
: schilds used the star on their family
I coat of arms when they were raised
to nobility by the Austrian emperor.
Today, you can find the six-pointed
1 star on everything from the flag of
I Northern Ireland to the badges of
county sheriffs. And while it also
appears, of course, on the flag of
I Israel, the Jewish state's official seal
uses a much older, and uniquely Jew-
ish symbol: the menora.
.
sure to include your
dame and address. The column
will attempt to answer as many
questions as possible.
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