RB022
Bronze ceremonial incense shovel (- Mahta).
Early Roman Period: 1st ??? 2nd century AD
H. 31 cm (12 1/4 in.)
Perfect condition. Fine green patina with light encrustation.
Sold
The shovel with a rectangular tray and horizontal handle. The tray is open at one end, with low vertical sides and narrow horizontal rim round three sides. The handle is modeled as a pillar with a capital, with foot extension projecting from the end, and acanthus leaf above. Two hollow pointed conical projections at the two inner corners of the tray, flanking the handle. Four short pegs at four corners under the tray, for support.
The incense shovel was a ritual object. In the Jewish religion, it was used in the Temple of Jerusalem, to clean the lamps of the Menorah (Ex.25:38). After the destruction of the Temple in 70 CE, the incense shovel became one of the Jewish symbols, with the Temple Menorah, the Lulav and Ethrog, and the Shofar. These elements became the Jewish religious and national symbols, that represented the belief in the national freedom of the Jewish people in the Land of Israel, with the revival of the religious ritual in the Temple of Jerusalem.
Cf. Muscarella, O. W., editor, Royal Ontario Museum, 1981, Cat. No. 274, p. 293.
The New Encyclopedia of Archeological Excavations in the Holy Land, 1992, p. 908.
Hayes, J. W., Royal Ontario Museum, 1984, pp. 203-207.
Y. Yadin, 1963, pp. 48-53.
(Hebrew) Yadin, Y., 1977, pp. 108-109.
Appearances of the shovel in Jewish art as a Jewish symbol:
Hachlili, R., 1988, pp.257-263.
National Treasures website by the Israel Antiquities Authority, item 1996-288.
Muscarella, O. W., editor, Ladders to Heaven. Art Treasures from Lands of the Bible, Exh. cat., Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, 1981.
The New Encyclopedia of Archeological Excavations in the Holy Land, Jerusalem, 1992, chief editor Efraim Shtern, (Hebrew).
Hayes, J. W., Greek, Roman, and Related Metalware in the Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, 1984.
Y. Yadin, The Finds from the Bar Kochba Period in the Caves of Letters, Jerusalem 1963.
(Hebrew) Yadin, Y., Bar-Kokhba: The Rediscovery of the Legendary Hero of the Second Jewish Revolt Against Rome, Tel-Aviv, 1977.
Hachlili, R., Ancient Jewish Art and Archeology in the Land of Israel, E.J. Brill, Leiden, 1988.
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