Pewter platter. [Probably Germany, 18th century].
Pewter, cast and engraved (marked with unidentified maker’s mark – a shield with an ornament at bottom bearing the letters "ICS" [undocumented by Erwin Hintze]; underneath this, the letters "NS" are stamped).
Round platter with a broad, elevated rim. Engraved on the rim is an inscription with the Biblical verse (Hebrew) "From east to west, [G-d’s] [?] name is praised", and after this, the Hebrew initials "peh", "mem", "mem" [?].
The Hebrew verse "From east to west…" (Tehillim, 113:3) appears frequently on "Mizrach" plaques, meant to indicate the eastwardly direction of prayer in Jewish homes. The fact that the verse appears on this platter seems to suggest it may have indeed served as something of a "Mizrach" plaque. On the other hand, a very similar platter with the engraved Biblical inscription (Hebrew) "G-d’s right hand is exalted! G-d’s right hand is triumphant!" (Tehillim, 118:16) can be found in the collection of the Cologne City Museum (Kölnische Stadtmuseum; Item no. RM 1928/1067c), and this particular item has been identified as a Passover seder plate.
Diameter: 31 cm. Height: 1.5-2 cm. Good condition. Warping and scratches.
Provenance: The Simon Brueckheimer Collection.
Simon Brueckheimer, born in Külsheim, Germany, in 1889. Moved to Marktbreit in 1911, and began serving there as an educator in 1920. In 1929 he initiated a project to document sacred objects and property of Bavarian Jewish communities, which he pursued during his vacation time as a teacher, under the auspices of the Union of Bavarian Jewish Communities (Verband Bayerischer Israelitischer Gemeinden). Brueckheimer escaped to Frankfurt in the heat of Kristallnacht, but was then arrested and sent to Buchenwald Concentration Camp. After six weeks he was released, returned to Marktbreit, and then emigrated with his family to London, where he continued his documentation project on Bavarian Jewry. In the course of his visits to small Bavarian Jewish communities and later, after moving to London, Brueckheimer succeeded in assembling a small collection of Jewish items, which he had acquired either during his visits to the towns themselves or from purchases from Jewish refugees escaping to England. The important items in his collection include a cup used for special dinners by the "Chevrah Kadisha" (Burial Society) of Schwabach, today part of the collection of the Israel Museum, Jerusalem, and a Torah Shield belonging to the community of Goßmannsdorf, sold at Kedem, Auction 106, 24 February 2026, Lot 14. His notes and listings – documenting 150 small Jewish communities throughout Bavaria – are kept in the archives of the Yad VaShem World Holocaust Remembrance Center, Jerusalem. Brueckheimer passed away in England in 1950.
Several additional items from the Simon Brueckheimer Collection will be offered for sale at our upcoming public auctions. All proceeds from these sales will be donated.
