Untitled

of two columns surmounting an arched top, with
an altar and fire within, flanked by two bulls,
two gazelles, and two flower clusters (pl. II.3b);
the shrine is interpreted as the Temple in Jerusalem
and the scene’s meaning is suggested by the
inscription of Psalm 51: 21 above the scene.
It seems reasonable to infer that the structures
depicted in these examples are intended to represent
the Jerusalem Temple , either as conceived
by an artist consulting a pattern book or as representing
an ideal. The iconography differs from
the Ark of the Scroll and Torah shrine examples
but is similar to the sanctuaries; the Temple structures
are usually depicted with a gate while the
façades on the synagogue mosaics show double
decorated doors of an ark. The basic elements
of these sanctuaries including the general form,
the columns, the panelled doors, and the decorating
conch appear also in Torah shrine architecture
and depictions in synagogues of the Land
of Israel .
*
The major architectural feature of the synagogue
was the Torah shrine, which became a permanent
fixture in the synagogue building from its inception
following the destruction of the Jerusalem
Temple. Typological differences in the Torah
shrines should be attributed to local preferences,
popular vogues, or historical development. Built
usually on the Jerusalem-oriented wall, the Torah
shrine took the structural form of aedicula, niche
or apse. All three types of repositories were constructed
of stone, were elevated on bases and
were approached by steps. The Torah shrine was
the receptacle for the Ark of the Scrolls, which
was probably made of wood (Hachlili 2000:
161-163).
The earliest artistically rendered examples of
the Torah shrine and ark appear in the Land of
Israel during the 3rd-4th centuries in both synagogal
art (on the Hammath Tiberias mosaic) and
funerary art (inscribed on walls and painted on
stones at Beth She‘arim). In the Diaspora, representations
of the Ark of the Scrolls alone, likewise
dated to the 3rd-4th centuries, appear on funerary
art (on objects and wall paintings of the catacombs
of Rome) and on lamps .
Often the Torah shrine and the ark are flanked
by other images: a pair of menoroth and ritual
the jewish symbols panel 33
objects on synagogue mosaic pavements at Beth
"Alpha, Hammath Tiberias, Na#aran, Sepphoris,
and Susiya. In the Diaspora the ark, sometimes
flanked by a menorah and ritual object s, is found
on tombstones, in wall paintings, and on gold
glasses from the catacombs in Rome (Hachlili
1997, pls. VI-15, 18, 19, 26-28); sometimes the
ritual objects only appear, without a menorah. At
other times the ark is also flanked with animals.
Two lions and two birds flank the ark and the
menorah on the mosaic at Beth "Alpha and on
gold glasses from the catacombs of Rome (Hachlili
1997, nos. 3, 4, 5 and 7; figs. VI-20, 22, 24). These
depictions of the Torah shrine with the two flanking
menoroth may represent the actual position
of the Torah shrine and menoroth in their prominent
place in the synagogue building.
The Torah shrine designs appearing in synagogue
and funerary art throughout the Land of
Israel and the Diaspora are reminiscent of Temple
designs (Hachlili 2000: 155-157, figs. 18). Some
scholars argue that the designs discussed here as
depictions of the synagogue Torah shrine and
ark are in fact representations of the Jerusalem
Temple. However, the designs differ: in the
Temple designs, the structure has a tiled roof and
inside the façade and a decorated double closed
gate, which sometimes has a lock, rings, and a
veil. In the Torah shrine designs the structure is
usually depicted as a columned façade with decorated
double closed ark doors in the Land of Israel
renditions, further proved by the depictions of the
ark in the Diaspora examples were the open doors
of the ark show clearly the scrolls on the shelves
(fig. II-14; Hachlili 2000: 159, figs. 15-17).
The Torah shrine and ark representation in
Jewish art, especially on the mosaic pavements
of synagogues, had symbolic connotations: first,
they symbolized the actual form and position of
the Torah shrine and the ark in synagogue architecture;
second, they were spiritual and religious
symbols of the Torah. Torah reading conducted
in public was a most important element in synagogue
life and ceremonial. The location of the
Torah shrine, which is the focal point of the ceremony
in the synagogue on the Jerusalem-oriented
wall, and its similarity in design to the assumed
Temple façade, indicate the relations between
them. The connection is enhanced by the aspiration
to arouse the memory of the Temple.