ELIZABETH APPLEBAUM
AppleTree Editor
-
ou may have noticed that a sefer
Torah, or Torah scroll, is never
"naked," so to speak.
Whenever a sefer Torah is
removed from the ark to be read, or placed
back in the ark for safekeeping, it requires a
thorough ritual of preparation.
What is all that stuff on the Torah?
The first step, after the sefer Torah is
rolled up, is to tie it together with a gartl,
the Yiddish word for belt. The gartl is long
and usually between two and three inches
wide. It can be made of various materials
and does not need to be any particular
color.
Some families like to take the material
from a swaddling cloth used at their son's
brit to create a gartl for the Torah he will
read at his bar mitzvah.
The sole reason for the gartl is to hold the
scrolls together.
The second step is covering the sefer
Torah with a fabric mantle. Its purpose is
twofold. It is there to protect the sefer
Torah, but also there to beautify it.
"Have a beautiful scroll of the law pre-
pared, copied by a scribe, written with fine
ink and a fine quill and wrapped in beauti-
ful silk," the Talmud directs in Shabbat
133b.
This mantle can be of any color, though
it's traditional to cover sifrei Torah with a
white mantle on the High Holidays.
Another reason for the mantle is to pro-
vide readers with an opportunity to "touch"
the Torah. Of course we do not actually
touch a sefer Torah, but instead those
receiving an aliyah may use their tallit or
the mantle to touch the scroll before recit-
ing a blessing.
Atop the mantle is the breastplate.
Usually, the breastplate is made of silver,
though this is not required by Halachah,
Jewish law.
Measuring about 8x10 inches, the breast-
plate hangs from a chain.
The breastplate is placed over the wooden
poles of the sefer Torah, and is fashioned to
resemble the breastplate worn by the High
Priest in the Holy Temple. The breastplate
of the High Priest had four rows of three
precious stones each, representing the 12
sons of Jacob. (You can read more in Exodus
28:13 30 and 39:8 21).
Reflecting its royalty, the Torah has a
crown (of no specified material). Pirkei Avot
(Ethics of the Fathers) states: "There are
three crowns: the crown of the law (the
Torah), the crown of the Priest and the
crown of loyalty, but the crown of a good
name is above them all.")
Crowning the Torah is an ancient tradi-
tion. Documents record the use of Torah
crowns as early as the 10th century C.E.
Atop the wooden poles to which the
Torah scrolls are attached are more crowns,
tiny ones called rimmonim. Both the Torah
crown and the rimmonim are decorated
with golden bells, which also harken back
to the High Priest. (The Torah, in Exodus
28:33 recounts that the High Priest wore a
robe adorned with tiny bells).
No one is certain how bells became a part
of the Torah's decoration, though most
believe that it represents a kind of wake-up
call. Jewish law obligates all who are physi-
cally able, to stand when the Torah is
removed from the ark. Some scholars specu-
late that the bells are to signal that the
Torah is being taken out, and that all
should now rise to their fee. ❑
-
-
Here is your chance to learn all kinds of compelling and unusual facts about Jewish life
throughout the years. Now You Know introduces you to famous scholars and infamous
gangsters, considers decisions and incidents that continue to shape the way we live today
and tells you the story behind everything from classic Jewish texts to Hollywood feuds
— all on a single page. It's history, and it's fun; sit down and learn a little (best of all,
there are no homework assignments).