The Meaning of Asymmetry in jewish Art

Notes

• The Jerusalem Talmud was composed in Palestine between the third and fifth centuries. The so—called Babylonian Talmud, compiled in Mesopotamia, was finished in the sixth century. See Encyclopedia Judaica (later EJ) s. v. ‘Talmud’.
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• For a contrary opinion on the formal aspects of early Jewish art, see my papers on ‘A Stylistic Re-evaluation of Ancient Jewish Art’, 17th International Byzantine Congress: Short Papers (Washington, DC, 1986), pp.274–5; and The “Akedah” of Bet Alpha and the Problem of Perspective in Ancient Jewish Art', Rimonim, 2 (1985): 22–31 [Hebrew]; also my Perspective (Tel Aviv, 1978), pp.36–7 [Hebrew]
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• For the mural paintings, see EJ, s. v. ‘Dura-Europos’; also G. Sed—Rajna, Ancient Jewish Art (Paris, 1985), pp.65–7. On the synagogue, see C. H. Kraeling, The Excavations at Dura Europas: The Synagogue (Final Report, v.8/1).
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• On the mosaic, see Z. Weiss and E. Netzer, Promise and Redemption: A Synagogue Mosaic from Sepphoris (Israel Museum, 1996), pp.18–19. On the excavation, see Z. Weiss and E. Netzer, ‘New Evidence of Late Roman and Byzantine Sepphoris’, Roman and Byzantine Near East Recent Archaeological Research [Journal of Roman and Byzantine Archeology, Supp. ser.14] (Ann Arbor, MI, 1995), pp.162–76.
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• Dothan , M. “ ‘Tveria: Hammat Tveria' [Hebrew] ” . In Encyclopaedia of Archeological Excavations in the Holy Land Edited by: Mazar , B. (Ramat Gan, 1970), Vol. I: 196–200; and idem, ‘The Synagogue at Hammath Tiberias’, Qadmoniot, 1 (1969): 123. See also Sed—Rajna, Ancient Jewish Art (note 3), p.197.
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• N. Avigad, ‘Bet Alpha’ [Hebrew] in Mazar, Encyclopaedia (see note 5), Vol. I: 37–9; and Sed—Rajna, Ancient Jewish Art (see note 3), p. l07f. See also E. L. Sukenik, The Ancient Synagogue of Beth Alpha (Jerusalem, 1932).
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• S. Appelbaum, ‘Bet Shean’ [Hebrew] in Mazar, Encyclopaedia (see note 5), Vol. I: 76; and Sed—Rajna, Ancient Jewish Art (see note 3), p.109.
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• For the miniatures, see J. Gutmann, Hebrew Manuscript Painting (New York, 1978), pp.50–6, plates 6–9.
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• On the Torah Ark reliefs, see G. Wigoder, Jewish Art and Civilization (Jerusalem, 1987), Vol. II: 87.
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• On symmetry in Greek culture, see J. J. Pollitt, Art and Experience in Classical Greece (London, 1972), pp.106–8; also idem, Ancient View of Greek Art (New Haven, 1974), pp.15 ff. and passim. On the Canon of Polykleitos, see Pollitt, Art and Experience, p.108.
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• Vitruvius, De Architectura, Bk. I, 2:3 and the special chapter on symmetry in Bk. III, trans, by H. M. Morgan (New York, 1960), pp.14 and 72 ff.
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• On Roman basilicas, see ibid., Bk. V, 6:1, pp.132–4. For the synagogues, see N. Avigad, The Galilean Synagogues Predecessors' in I. Levine, Ancient Synagogues Revealed (Jerusalem, 1981), pp.42–4; also G. Foerster, ‘Architectural Models of the Greco-Roman Period and the Origins of Galilean Synagogues’, in ibid., pp.45–51. See also a comparative survey of the ground plans in M. Avi—Yonah, ‘Ancient Synagogues’, Ariel, 32 (1973): 29–43; for additional comments, see R. Hachlili, Ancient Jewish Art and Archaeology in the Land of Israel (Leiden, 1988), pp.141–60.
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• The orientation of prayer toward Jerusalem obviously changes according to the geographical location of the synagogue. See M. Avi—Yonah, ‘Ancient Synagogues’ (note 12), p.42.
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• For a survey of the principal connotations of bilateral symmetry, see J. Chevalier and A. Gheerbrant, Dictionnaire des symboles (Paris, 1969), s. v. ‘Symetrie’; on the perceptual aspects of symmetry in art as formal balance, see R. Arnheim, Art and Visual Perception (London, 1969), pp.1–32. The conceptual meaning of asymmetry has seldom been analysed. For some pertinent remarks, see H. Read, Origins of Form in Art (London, 1965), pp.87–96.
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• On the Canaanite antecedents of Solomon's Temple and a reconstruction of its ground plan, and on the structure of the Second Temple, see EJ, s. v. ‘Temple’. On the remains of the Second Temple, see also B. Bagatti, Recherches sur le site du Temple de Jerusalem (Jerusalem, 1979).
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• On the form of the Temple candelabrum, see Ex. 25:31–36; 37:17–22; and on its imitations see EJ, s. v. ‘Menorah’.
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• For the mosaic techniques, see R. Mayer, The Artist's Handbook of Materials and Techniques (New York, 1957), pp.387–8; also idem, Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques (New York, 1975), s. v. ‘Mosaic’.
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• On medieval illuminators' erroneous copying of perspective designs, see E. Panofsky, Perspective as a Symbolic Form, trans, by C. Wood (New York, 1991), p.92.
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• Mango , C. , ed. The Art of the Byzantine Empire, 312–1453: Sources and Documents Codex of Justinian, 1:7 (Edict of Theodosius II); see (Englewood Cliffs, NJ, 1972), p.36 and n.63.
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• On theological justifications of the worship of images see ibid., pp.40, 116–17 and 19; see also M. Barasch, Icon (New York, 1992), pp.185–220.
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• On the imprints of Christ's face, see Cat, Il volto di Cristo (Rome, 2000), pp.278–82 and passim; also H. Kessler and G. Wolff, The Holy Face and Paradox of Representation (Bologna, 1998).
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• Cassuto , D. , ed. Icon On the Jewish understanding of the Second Commandment, see Barasch, (note 20), pp.13–22; also K. P. Blank, The Artless Jew: Medieval and Modern Affirmation of the Visual (Princeton, NJ, 2000), pp.59ff. For the Late Antique Jewish attitude to images, see E. U. Urbach, The Laws of Idolatry in the Light of Historical and Archaeological Facts in the Third Century' [Hebrew], Erez Israel 5 (1958): 199–205; also idem, ‘The Rabbinical Laws of Idolatry in the Second and Third Centuries in the Light of Archaeological and Historical Facts’, Israel Exploration Journal, 9 (1959): 1.149–65. For a comprehensive analytical summary of the laws, see A. Kirschbaum, Art in the Halakhah [Oral Law], [Hebrew] in Judaism and Art (Ramat Gan, Bar Ilan University, n. d.) pp.31–52; also S. S. Schwarzschild, ‘The Legal Foundation of Jewish Aesthetics’, Aesthetic Education 9 (1975): 29–32.
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• On the prohibition of the images of sun and moon, see Schwarzschild (note 22), p.31; see also Kirschbaum's systematic table of the forbidden images (note 22).
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• Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research , 228 On Helios in Jewish art, see R. Hachlili, The Zodiac in Ancient Jewish Representations and Significance’, (1977): 61–77.
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• Avodah Zarah , 3 Talmud tractate: 43b; see also EJ, s. v. ‘Menorah’.
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• Avodah Zarah, 1:5.
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• Avodah Zarah, 3: 42d.
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• On Rabbi Joseph Caro (1488–1575), see EJ, s. v. ‘Caro, Joseph Ben Ephraim’; on his codification of the traditional rulings, EJ, s. v. ‘Shulhan Arukh’.
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• Gutmann . 1984 . Hebrew' Manuscript Painting Edited by: Kotzshe , L. and van der Osten Sacken , P. 32 – 3 . (see note 8), pp.51–2. See also M. Rosenthal, ‘David redivivus, Studien zur judischen Erlossingsidee in Sicht und Bild des 13 Jahrhunderts’, in Wenn der Mesias kommt (Berlin,)
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• I use the term symbolic in the sense given to it by E. Cassirer in his Philosophy of Symbolic Forms, trans, by R. Manheim (New Haven, 1974), passim.
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