A PAIR OF RARE AND IMPORTANT GERMAN PARCEL-GILT SILVER TORAH FINIALS.

Hamburg, 18th century. The multi-tiered body of each finial is surrounded by twelve bells and surmounted by a gilt crown topped with an eagle. There are six reverse scroll brackets on the lower tier and a matching number of dragon-like grotesques ring the upper tier. The sections are divided by elaborate openwork decorated with floral motifs and strapwork. Additional sinuous tendrils support the body, and loops may have held additional bells. The center portion of each finial features a large gilt cylinder containing the hardware with which the finials are assembled. The cylindrical shaft is engraved in the upper and lower portions with delicate garlands and topped with beadwork. Marks: City mark (a castle) and maker’s mark (indistinct) on upper rim. Height: 15 inches (38.4 cm). Some damage to lower portion of openwork of one finial. Grimwade no. 3 (81). A masterful combination of architectural and natural imagery somewhat reminiscent of Torah finials produced by Jeremias Zobel in the early 18th-century, the present German rimonim strongly parallel the Dutch and English style, characterized by open tower forms and the use of cast brackets, often topped with a crown finial. They also share strong stylistic elements with the work of Dutch silversmiths such as Pieter von Hoven and Rosier and especially the London Sephardi silversmith Abraham de Oliveyra (see R.D. Barnett, Catalogue of the Jewish Museum London p. 28 no. 120 plate LIX). Such influences on cultural tastes reflect the strong links between the Jews of the small Sephardic community of Hamburg with their cousins in the larger Sephardic population centers of London and Amsterdam. For another pair of Hamburg finials see R. Grafman, 50 Rimmonim: A Selection of Torah Finials from a European Family Collection (1998) no. 34, p. 76. See also Crowning Glory: Silver Torah Ornaments of the Jewish Museum, New York, 1996, p. 43 and cf. Schliemann, Die Goldschmeide Hamburg 1-3, 835, 836, 838. <<Hamburg finials are scarce. of the present style, no other example has been located.>>