Torah shield and Torah pointer, created by Avraham Keller. [Jerusalem, ca. 1900]
Carved olivewood; carved mother-of-pearl (abalone); paint.
Two unique, high-quality Torah-scroll adornments made of olivewood and mother-of-pearl (abalone), created in Jerusalem in the late 19th or early 20th century by the artist Avraham Keller.
1. Torah shield.
Two Stars of David are carved on either side of the upper section, and between them, below, are the Two Tablets of the Law inscribed with the abbreviated (Hebrew) Ten Commandments, with symmetrical vegetal patterns on either side and surmounted by a large, elegant crown. In addition to the Ten Commandments, a number of (Hebrew) inscriptions appear in black ink: "Jerusalem the Holy City" (on top), "Olive / Trees" (inside the Stars of David), and "Crown of Torah" (on the crown). In the bottom section is a carved depiction of the Western Wall, labeled below (Hebrew), "Western Wall"; carved above this illustration are images of four cypress trees and two buildings. In the right and left margins is a pair of tall architectonic columns with ornamental bases and capitals, and surmounted by a symmetrical pair of large birds. In the middle of the Western Wall is a rectangular compartment for interchangeable plaques (enclosed, 4 original two-sided plaques made of thin strips of wood).
Marked on the back (Hebrew, in black ink): "Made by the artist / Avraham Keller". Lengthy metal suspension chain.
2. Torah pointer.
With three somewhat flattened spherical segments adorned in a vegetal pattern. Carved into the segment at the upper end are depictions of the Dome of the Rock and the opening to the Tombs of the Sanhedrin (labeled with the Hebrew words, inscribed in black, for "Place of the Temple" and "Cave of the Sanhedrin", respectively). This segment can be opened and closed by means of a screw mechanism; thanks to this and a number of small apertures carved into it, this part is also meant to serve as a "Havdalah" spicebox. The segment is surmounted by an acorn-shaped ornament, through which a suspension ring passes. A chain consisting of 54 carved wooden beads is attached to the suspension ring. The pointer "hand" (with an extended index finger) is made of carved mother-of-pearl (abalone).
A large number of highly diverse olivewood objects, of many types, were made in Palestine from the second half of the 19th century through to the early decades of the 20th. They served a broad range of functional and decorative purposes, and were marketed to Christian, Muslim, and Jewish clienteles. Among the Jewish objects, we find reliefs of the Western Wall and the "Place of the Temple"; Rachel’s Tomb and other holy sites; and a significant number of objects intended for sacred ritual purposes, such as Passover Seder plates, etrog (citron) boxes, Hanukkah lamps, Esther scroll cases, Havdalah spiceboxes, Torah finials, and Torah pointers. Nevertheless, it is rare and highly unusual to find such objects bearing the name or maker’s mark of the artist. And from among all the documented olivewood Jewish items, no other Torah shield is known to be extant.
Little is known about the artist Avraham Keller (1870-1941). He was born in Safed, and moved from there, with his brother and sister, to Jerusalem. He was married to Sheindel (née Eisenberg), who came from the "moshava" of Rehovot. The couple and their three children moved to Rehovot in 1910. Keller lived in New York for a few years, where he worked in a factory, designing iron rods. Upon returning to Rehovot, he used the money earned in New York to purchase 40 dunams (4 hectares or roughly 10 acres) of land in the area between Rehovot and Ness Ziona, where he planted citrus groves. More information regarding Avraham Keller and his family can be found on the website of the Rehovot City Archive (in Hebrew only, on a page devoted to the Keller family. For an additional item created by Avraham Keller ca. 1894-95 (a bookbinding for the rules and regulations of the Achva Society), see Kedem, Auction 103, 1 September 2025, Lot 176.
Torah shield: Height: 24 cm. Width: 19.5 cm. Thickness: 1.7 cm. Overall good condition. Open fracture to corner of one interchangeable plaque.
Torah pointer: Length: 31.5 cm. Maximal width: 4.5 cm. Length of chain: 32 cm. Good condition. Fracture, mended with glue, to index finger of pointer. Fractures to wood of screw thread of upper segment.
