Labels Copy for the Exhibition
“Being Jewish”: A Bay Area Portrait
June 8, 2008 - ongoing
1. Levi’s yarmulke, 1970s–1990s
Denim
Courtesy of Len and Robbie Cohn
In this yarmulke (Jewish skullcap, also known as kippah in Hebrew), the quintessential Jewish headgear meets
the quintessential American garment. The yarmulke is a head covering worn at all times by Orthodox Jewish
men, as well as by Conservative and Reform Jewish men (and some women) during religious services. The
Levi’s yarmulkes were not for sale, but were made for special occasions, such as Bar and Bat Mitzvahs,
under the auspices of longtime Levi’s executive Emil Knopf, a refugee from Poland who started working for
Levi Strauss & Co. when he came to San Francisco in the 1950s.
2. “Rally Rabbi” bobblehead, 2007
Cold-cast resin
Courtesy of The San Francisco Giants
The “Rally Rabbi” bobblehead was given out at the 2007 Jewish Heritage Day at a San Francisco Giants
home game. The figure is modeled on Rabbi Yosef Langer, head of the San Francisco center for the Hasidic
Jewish Chabad movement. He is blowing a shofar (ram’s horn). Rabbi Langer can be seen in the
photocollage.
3. Andrew Skurman (American, born 1953)
San Francisco Pyramid Spice Box, 2004
Sterling silver
Courtesy of Sally-Ann Fain Epstein and Ervin Epstein, Jr.
The spice box is filled with sweet spices and used in the havdalah ritual, which marks the end of the Jewish
Sabbath, or day of rest. The spices are inhaled as a way to hold on to the sweet memory of the Sabbath
during the transition to the workweek. Since medieval times, towers have been the most pervasive design for
these ritual objects. This modern spice box refers to this tradition, but with a Bay Area twist. Based on a San
Francisco icon, the Transamerica Pyramid building, this spice box by San Francisco architect Andrew
Skurman was made for the Contemporary Jewish Museum’s 2004 invitational exhibition Scents of Purpose:
Artists Interpret the Spice Box.
4. Ketubah, 2004
Designed by Leah Sosewitz (American, born 1955)
Reproduction of four-color lithography print
Courtesy of Amber Weiss and Sharon Papo
A ketubah is a Jewish marriage document. Traditionally, ketubot record the financial obligations of a husband
toward his wife. They continue to be commonly used for Jewish marriages, but rather than follow the
traditional formula, many contemporary ketubot are illustrated documents where couples declare their love for
each other. This ketubah for a lesbian wedding is signed by brides Amber Weiss and Sharon Papo. Images of
their wedding can be found in the photocollage.
736 Mission Street San Francisco, California 94103 telephone 415 655 7800 fax 415 655 7815 thecjm.org
5. Victor Ries (American, born Germany, 1907)
Seder plate, mid-20th century
Brass and lucite
Elizabeth S. and Alvin I. Fine Museum of Congregation Emanu-El, Gift in honor of the 50th
anniversary of Alice and Harry Geballe from their children and grandchildren
The seder plate is used to celebrate Passover, the spring holiday that commemorates the liberation of the
Jews from slavery and their exodus from Egypt. The plate holds the foods that symbolize key elements of the
Passover story and celebration. This modern seder plate was made by local artist Victor Ries, who fled his
native Germany in 1933 for Israel and eventually settled in Northern California. The Hebrew inscription says:
“This is the bread of affliction which our fathers ate in the land of Egypt. Let anyone who is hungry, come in
and eat; let anyone who is needy, come in and make Passover.”
6. Program, Mass Meeting Against Nazi Extermination of Jews and Other
Minorities, 1943
Reproduction
Courtesy of the Holocaust Center of Northern California
The Bay Area Jewish community organized to protest the atrocities in Europe during World War II. This
event, held at San Francisco Civic Auditorium, included a speech by the well-known German writer Thomas
Mann and performances by Isaac Stern and Eddie Cantor. It was organized by the United Jewish Committee
of San Francisco Against Nazi Extermination of Jews and Other Minorities. This committee included local
synagogues and Jewish political and fraternal organizations. Among the many sponsors was then California
Governor Earl Warren.
7. Shofar
Ram’s horn
Elizabeth S. and Alvin I. Fine Museum of Congregation Emanu-El
A shofar is a ram’s horn blown like a trumpet during the Jewish New Year (Rosh Hashana) and the Day of
Atonement (Yom Kippur). These fall holidays are the most important in the Jewish calendar, and a time to
reflect and consider one’s actions during the previous year. Hearing the shofar sound is one of the key
observances of the New Year; it signifies the need to wake up to the call to repentance. Around the Bay Area,
at the beach or by the Bay, you might spot people performing another Jewish New Year ritual by throwing
bits of bread into the water, thereby symbolically casting off their sins.
8. Hanukkah lamp, 19th–20th century
Germany
Cast brass
Jewish Heritage Museum, Ruth & Max Eis Collection of Judaica, Danville, California
This lamp of typical Central European design holds eight candles, one for each day of the winter Hanukkah
holiday. It is from the collection of Ruth and Max Eis, who spent over fifty years traveling the world
“rescuing” Jewish ceremonial objects, starting with objects saved from their families in Germany.
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9. Vosem Voprosov ob Iudaizme (The Eight Questions People Ask About
Judaism)
Los Angeles: Almanac Press, 1981
Courtesy of David Waksberg
This Russian translation of the popular book by Dennis Prager and Joseph Telushkin was a project of a group
of organizations including the Bay Area Council for Soviet Jews. As part of the movement to improve human
rights for Soviet Jews and help re-establish Jewish life that had been suppressed during the Communist era,
this book served to provide otherwise unavailable information about Judaism to Soviet Jews. Originally
published in the United States, it was eventually reprinted in Leningrad (now St. Petersburg). The Bay Area
community was actively involved in the campaign to free more than a million Soviet Jews, beginning in the
1960s and continuing through the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991.
10. Tony Berlant (American, born 1941)
The Light That Never Fails, 1999
Collaged metal on wood with steel
Courtesy of Marilyn Waldman
The tzedakah box is a small container kept in the home or synagogue in which charitable donations are
collected. The Hebrew on the side of the box spells “tzedakah,” literally “righteousness,” which is the Jewish
commandment to provide for the less fortunate as a means of bringing justice to the world. California artist
Tony Berlant made this tzedakah box for the Contemporary Jewish Museum’s 1999 invitational exhibition
Making Change: 100 Artists Interpret the Tzedakah Box.
11. Mezuzot, 2003
Polymer clay
Courtesy of Brandeis Hillel Day School
A mezuzah (Hebrew for “doorpost”) is a small case attached to a doorpost of a house, which contains a
parchment scroll with selected Torah verses written on it. This practice derives from the commandment to
Jews to keep God’s words constantly in their minds and hearts by writing the words on their doorposts.
These mezuzot were made by families of Brandeis Hillel Day School. Every doorway of the school’s San
Francisco campus has a family-made mezuzah.
12. Candlesticks, mid-19th century
Romania
Silver
Courtesy of Sheldon and Rhoda Wolfe
Celebration of the Jewish Sabbath, the day of rest, as well as most Jewish holidays, begins with lighting
candles and reciting a blessing. These candlesticks journeyed from Romania, to the East Coast of the United
States, and finally to California, where they have been cherished and used by two generations of Bay Area
natives.
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13. Hanukkah lamp, 18th–19th century
Morocco
Brass
Jewish Heritage Museum, Ruth & Max Eis Collection of Judaica, Danville, California
Many Moroccan Hanukkah lamps use Islamic architectural forms, such as the row of horseshoe arches seen
in the back plate of this lamp. With eight holders for oil rather than candles, this lamp is meant to be hung on
the wall by the ring at the top. Moroccan and other Mizrachi Jews (those indigenous to the Middle East and
North Africa) have been called the “forgotten refugees.” The San Francisco–based group JIMENA is a
human rights organization seeking to educate and advocate for the plight of Mizrachi Jews.
14. Kiddush cup, 1863
Silver
Elizabeth S. and Alvin I. Fine Museum of Congregation Emanu-El, Gift of Mrs. Martin A. Meyer in
honor of the 100th anniversary of Temple Emanu-El and in memory of Dr. Martin A. Meyer, Rabbi
of Temple Emanu-El, 1910–1923
A Kiddush cup holds the wine used to sanctify the Jewish Sabbath and other holidays. This cup has the
following inscription: “Presented to M. Silberstein by the Brethern of Har Harmoryo, Lodge No. 3, Kescher
Schell Barrsel, June 7, 1863.” It was presented to Congregation Emanu-El on its 100th anniversary in
memory of Dr. Martin A. Meyer, Emanu-El Rabbi from 1910 to 1923, who received the cup from his
grandfather, Rabbi M. Silverstein. This cup embodies the Jewish principle l’dor v’dor (from generation to
generation), which stresses the importance of passing on Jewish tradition.
15. He’brew “The Chosen Beer,” 1996
Courtesy of Brian J. Schulman
A product of Shmaltz Brewing Company, He’brew prides itself on being “Born and Based in San Francisco;
Brewed and Bottled in New York.” All He’brew products are kosher. Shmaltz is part of a long tradition of
local Jewish business. Genesis Ale was their flagship beer. As it says on the label, “Chutzpah never tasted
so good.”
16. Bezalel Workshop
Reliefs designed by Boris Schatz (Russian, 1866–1932)
Etrog container, 1906–1930
Israel
Brass and ivory
Elizabeth S. and Alvin I. Fine Museum of Congregation Emanu-El, Gift of Stuart N. Greenberg
The etrog (citron) is a strongly scented yellow citrus fruit used in celebrating the Jewish harvest festival of
Sukkot. The container protects the fruit, which must be flawless for ritual purposes. The four feet and lid
handle are all etrog-shaped. This container was donated to San Francisco’s Congregation Emanu-El by Stuart
N. Greenberg, grandson of Morris Greenberg, who came to California in 1851 and established a foundry that
served San Francisco’s maritime industry and utilities for over 100 years.
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17. Jewish Fashion Conspiracy
Yo Semite tee shirt
Cotton and silkscreen ink
Contemporary Jewish Museum purchase
Camp Tawonga is a Jewish summer camp located outside Yosemite National Park. Sarah Lefton, former
Tawonga director of marketing and outreach, saw the word “Yo Semite” in the Park’s name and formed a
company selling a line of cheeky Jewish tee-shirts. Thousands of “Yo Semite” tees were sold worldwide,
celebrating Jewish identity.
18. Spice box, early–mid 20th century
Israel
Silver
Courtesy of Stephen and Maribelle Leavitt
This Israeli-made havdalah spice box has a traditional Eastern European architectural motif. Havdalah,
marking the end of the Jewish Sabbath, is particularly popular in the Bay Area. Many of the collage
photographs show people observing this ritual, which includes inhaling sweet spices contained in the box as a
way to hold on to the sweet memory of the Sabbath. Spice boxes are often given in honor of important
Jewish life cycle events. This spice box was a gift to San Franciscan Maribelle Leavitt from her husband
Stephen in honor of her conversion to Judaism.
19. The Santa Cruz Haggadah
Berkeley: The Hineni Consciousness Press, 1991
Contemporary Jewish Museum purchase
The Haggadah is the text followed at the Passover seder, the ceremony during which family and friends
gather for a festive meal of symbolic foods and a communal telling of the story of the Jews’ exodus from
Egypt. This self-proclaimed “Passover Haggadah, Coloring Book, and Journal for the Evolving
Consciousness,” is one of the many “alternative” Haggadot widely used in the Bay Area.
20. Harriete Estel Berman (American, born 1952)
V’heiveitee—“…and I will bring you into the land I promised Abraham, Isaac
and Jacob,” 1997
Preprinted sheet metal from Jewish National Fund boxes
Courtesy of Ellie and Mark Lainer
Local artist Harriete Estel Berman made this Elijah’s cup for the Contemporary Jewish Museum’s 1997
invitational exhibition L’Chaim! A Kiddush Cup Invitational. An Elijah’s cup is a wine-filled ceremonial cup
placed on the Passover seder table as a symbol to welcome the prophet Elijah, traditionally associated with
the return of the Messiah. This cup is made from Jewish National Fund tzedakah boxes. These iconic blue
boxes have been kept in people’s homes since the early 1900s to collect coins for developing land and
planting trees in Israel. Berman cleverly repurposes the tzedakah boxes, with their relationship to restoring the
Promised Land, to make an Elijah’s cup with its own messianic meaning.
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21. Political buttons, 1970s–1990s
Courtesy of Naphtali Offen
The Jewish principle tikkun olam, literally “repairing the world,” has come to mean a call to action to
promote social justice. This assortment of political buttons for local and national, political and social, Jewish
and non-Jewish causes is just a small selection from the massive collection of buttons representing years of
political action by local Jewish, gay activist Naphtali Offen.
22. Shreve & Co., San Francisco
Torah finials, 1908
Sterling silver
Judah L. Magnes Museum, Gift of Congregation Beth Israel-Judea
Torah finials are placed at the end of the staves around which the Torah scroll is wound. This pair was
made by Shreve & Co., one of San Francisco’s oldest silversmiths. The finials originally belonged to
Congregation Beth Israel-Judea, which was formed by the merger of two longtime San Francisco Jewish
institutions: Congregation Beth Israel, founded in 1860 by German, French, and English Jews and then the
oldest Conservative congregation west of the Mississippi, and the Reform Temple Judea. They were
presented to Congregation Beth Israel in 1908 in honor of a Bar Mitzvah.
23. Western Union Telegram from the United Jewish Appeal to the Jewish
Welfare Fund of San Francisco, 1949
Jewish Welfare Federation of San Francisco, Marin and the Peninsula records (WJHC 1979.017),
Courtesy of the Western Jewish History Center, Judah L. Magnes Museum
The Bay Area Jewish community has a long history of support for Israel. This telegram, dated March 10,
1949, just ten months after Israeli independence, is an urgent request to the Jewish Welfare Fund of San
Francisco for monetary assistance to help settle immigrants to the new state. The Jewish Welfare Fund
responded eight days later with a check for $500,000. In 1981 the Jewish Welfare Fund became the Jewish
Community Federation, which continues to support the Jewish community in the Bay Area and in Israel.
24. Stanley Saitowitz (American, born South Africa, 1949)
Menorah, 1995
Stainless steel
Courtesy of Stanley Saitowitz
This modern Hanukkah lamp follows the traditional prescription that all lights are placed in a row, at the
same height, with sufficient space in between so that the flames never join. Placing the shamash (the candle
used to light all the other candles) on the left facilitates proper performance of the ritual—the lights should
be added from right to left and lit from left to right. This lamp was made by San Francisco architect Stanley
Saitowitz for the Contemporary Jewish Museum’s 1995 invitational exhibition Light Interpretations: A
Hanukkah Menorah Invitational.
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