Silver Kiddush cup
Object numberM2015/020:002
TitleSilver Kiddush cup
DescriptionSilver Kiddush cup from the Aaron family, a Sydney based Sephardic family from India, who originated from Iraq.
The tall-bowl-shaped body is decorated with floral and foliage engraving and raised on a short stem. There is an inscription in English, and Star of David. There is no date and no apparent silver hallmarks. In discussion with Charles Aronson, it was established that the cup was probably done in a private setting by a skilled person ie. not in a silver workshop.
Observant Jews are required to observe Shabbat, as stipulated by the Torah (Teaching, the Law), ie. to "observe it" and to "remember it". Reciting Kiddush is customary before the meal on the eve of Shabbat and Jewish holidays and it requires a cup (usually silver goblet – yet any cup can suffice) filled with wine. After reciting, the cup is either passed around the table or wine is poured for each participant. Often a kiddush is hosted by a family celebrating a special occasion, like the birth, a bar mitzvah, a wedding, or in a synagogue with reciting the Shabbat morning kiddush on behalf of all the attendees.
The Jewish population of India prospered in the mid-1940s, though the Aaron family, never really considered themselves as part of the Indian society. After the country became nationalized in 1948, many Jews left for Israel and Australia.
Aaron Aaron, an engineer, arrived in Sydney in 1950 and soon became a prominent figure of the Sydney Sephardic community. Always inspiring, in 1962, he and his brother, Reuben were instrumental in the establishment of the first Sephardic synagogue in Sydney - the well-known and still thriving place of worship in Fletcher Street, Woollahra. Archival materials documenting Reuben and Aaron’s activities are now safeguarded in the Archive of Australian Judaica at the University of Sydney. We are delighted and grateful to Aaron's sons, Moses and Issi Aaron of Marrickville, for their donation of a pair of inscribed and decoratively engraved silver Kiddush cups. Made in India, they belonged respectively to their grandparents, Mozelle and Moses Aaron and Rachel and Israel Menahaim, and were brought to Australia as part of a precious family trove. (see the second cup M2015/020:001).
Kiddush cups are usually made in silver and there is no prescribed form or size. Consequently, kiddush cups are part of Jewish families possession around the world and they come in many shapes, sizes and decoration. The significance of this cup, together with the second one in the pair, is that its provenance can be traced through the Aaron family where it remained for more than a century. The family made a significant contribution to the communal life of Jewish people in Sydney.
Reuben Aaron's autobiography was published in the Australian Jewish Historical Society Journal, Vol. XVI 2002, Part 3, p. 320 - 327.
See also Kettubah M2013/021:001, a Marriage certificate of Seemah Menahaim and Aaron Aaron, dated 27 December 1942, Calcutta, India.
The tall-bowl-shaped body is decorated with floral and foliage engraving and raised on a short stem. There is an inscription in English, and Star of David. There is no date and no apparent silver hallmarks. In discussion with Charles Aronson, it was established that the cup was probably done in a private setting by a skilled person ie. not in a silver workshop.
Observant Jews are required to observe Shabbat, as stipulated by the Torah (Teaching, the Law), ie. to "observe it" and to "remember it". Reciting Kiddush is customary before the meal on the eve of Shabbat and Jewish holidays and it requires a cup (usually silver goblet – yet any cup can suffice) filled with wine. After reciting, the cup is either passed around the table or wine is poured for each participant. Often a kiddush is hosted by a family celebrating a special occasion, like the birth, a bar mitzvah, a wedding, or in a synagogue with reciting the Shabbat morning kiddush on behalf of all the attendees.
The Jewish population of India prospered in the mid-1940s, though the Aaron family, never really considered themselves as part of the Indian society. After the country became nationalized in 1948, many Jews left for Israel and Australia.
Aaron Aaron, an engineer, arrived in Sydney in 1950 and soon became a prominent figure of the Sydney Sephardic community. Always inspiring, in 1962, he and his brother, Reuben were instrumental in the establishment of the first Sephardic synagogue in Sydney - the well-known and still thriving place of worship in Fletcher Street, Woollahra. Archival materials documenting Reuben and Aaron’s activities are now safeguarded in the Archive of Australian Judaica at the University of Sydney. We are delighted and grateful to Aaron's sons, Moses and Issi Aaron of Marrickville, for their donation of a pair of inscribed and decoratively engraved silver Kiddush cups. Made in India, they belonged respectively to their grandparents, Mozelle and Moses Aaron and Rachel and Israel Menahaim, and were brought to Australia as part of a precious family trove. (see the second cup M2015/020:001).
Kiddush cups are usually made in silver and there is no prescribed form or size. Consequently, kiddush cups are part of Jewish families possession around the world and they come in many shapes, sizes and decoration. The significance of this cup, together with the second one in the pair, is that its provenance can be traced through the Aaron family where it remained for more than a century. The family made a significant contribution to the communal life of Jewish people in Sydney.
Reuben Aaron's autobiography was published in the Australian Jewish Historical Society Journal, Vol. XVI 2002, Part 3, p. 320 - 327.
See also Kettubah M2013/021:001, a Marriage certificate of Seemah Menahaim and Aaron Aaron, dated 27 December 1942, Calcutta, India.
Production placeIndia
Production date 1950 1900
SubjectJudaica, Sephardi Jewry, Judaism
Object nameKiddush cup
Materialsilver
Dimensions
- cup diameter: 56.00 mm
height: 118.00 mm
Language
Credit lineSydney Jewish Museum Collection, Donated by Mr Issi Aaron