Lost Culture

Star of David remains from a destroyed synagogue in Bonn, Germany.

Picture is courtesy of Maxg from Flickr.

Destroyed Synagogue

Star of David on a German sign in Bonn - picture is courtesy of maxg from Flickr who translated the sign from German: 

"Close to this place stood the synagogue, built in the year 1878, and with the Nazi acts of violence against our Jewish fellow citizens on 9 November 1938, destroyed."

Who invented the Jewish Star of David?

Most Jews are proud of their Star of David without knowing who invented it or where it came from. Even the renowned Rabbi Moshe Feinstein wrote explicitly in his book, Igrot Moshe, that "We don't have the origin of the form of the Magen David".

 

When asked some cling to the legend about the Shield of King David or the Seal of King Solomon, Or the Shield of Bar Kochba, but they have no artifact or research to prove their argument.

 

Others say that the Star of David came from the Yellow patch that the Nazis made the Jews wear during the Holocaust. They believe that the fact that it is now in the center of the Israeli flag is a kind of poetic justice, similar to the Christian explanation about the origin of their emblem from the structure on which Jesus was crucified; Measure for measure – what served as a source of shame became a source of pride.

 

Not knowing about the origin of your emblem is not as bad as knowing that it came from other cultures. Many young Israelis travel to India and are surprised to discover their national symbol on the walls of many ancient temples. The Internet is full with theories about the ancient pagan and astrological origins of this symbol.  It is important to notice that although the Star of David is a hexagram, a six pointed star, not every hexagram is a Star of David.

 

Uri Ofir came up with a research in which he has a very good explanation about the origin of the Jewish Magen David from the Menorah in the Tabernacle. It was made by the Lord and not by a human being about a year after the exodus of the sons of Israel from Egypt. This theory satisfies the need to know but more than that – it provides a new source of pride, and a new educational tool.

 

What amazes me is that very few people know about Uri Ofir's research. He is lecturing about it every week for years and the audiences are always surprised and disappointed they didn't hear about it beforehand. I hope that by translating his research from Hebrew and by writing this posting I'll help the message get through.

 

The scope of this blog

This blog is focused on Jewish Stars of David (Magen David), but includes information also about the following subjects which refer to other sorts of hexagrams in other cultures:

Bronze Age hexagrams

Iron Age hexagrams

Arabs' and Muslims' hexagrams

Christian hexagrams

Eastern Religions hexagrams

Alchemy hexagrams

Witchcraft, Occultism hexagrams

Astrology hexagrams

Estoiles

Mullets (or molets)

Chinese checkers

Shatkona (Yantra), Mandala, Indian hexagrams

Snowflakes

Scientific

Raelism

Non Jewish heraldry and flags

Red Magen David

Theosophy

Zion Christian Church

Latter-day Saints (Mormons)

Buddhism Hinduism and Jainism

Pentagram and Magen David

M. Costa in his (Hebrew) book "Hatakh ha-zahav, hotam Shelomoh u-Magen-David" (Poalim, 1990) claims that there was no clear distinction between the pentagram and the Magen David until the 20^th century.

 

After giving a lecture about this subject one of his pupils told him that there's a Midrash (interpretation of the Holy Scriptures) that connects the pentagram and the Magen-David. The Midrash explains that the Magen David was meant to pass from father to son for generations, but King Solomon was too modest to inherit his father's emblem and chose a less honorable one by taking off one of the sides of the Star of King David and by that he created his own (Solomon's) seal...

 

Ebay

Searching on Google for the keywords "star of David" Ebay retrieved about 282,000 results, which means that it is a very popular item on eBay.

Clustering the first 150 results on vivisimo shows the main categories of these products:

38 results deal with Jewelry

24 results deal with Ebay Store

12 results deal with Designer

9 results deal with Crystal

7 results deal with Symbol

7 results deal with Star of David necklace

8 results deal with Italian Charms

6 results deal with Heart

4 results deal with Magen David

5 results deal with Books

Searching on Ebay for the keywords "Star of David" retrieved 668 items:

Jewellery & Watches (385)

Necklaces & Pendants (163)

Charms & Charm Bracelets (74)

Earrings (18)

Collectables (172)

Religions, Spirituality (148)

Historical Memorabilia (6)

Decorative Collectables (5)

Pottery & Glass (43)

Glass (40)

Pottery & China (3)

The overall picture is that the most popular items are Jewellery, Necklaces and Charms.

I'd like to read an analysis of the Star of David world market. Maybe one of you readers can guide me where to find it. Then I'll have an answer for the question – How much does it cost?

Under the Heaven

1: To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:

2: A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;

3: A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;

4: A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;

The Star of David is composed of all the possible opposites...

Discovering New Possibilities

For me the Star of David is about discovering new possibilities: the upper right and the upper left triangles are like arrows showing the way to opposite sides.  There are football players who use both legs in the same virtuosity, but I kick the ball much better with my right leg. I write with my right hand much better than I do with my left hand. What will it take to train the left to equal the right; to train the weak to equal the strong? These are new possibilities. This kind of thinking shows you who you are (right handed) and what are the directions you can explore. There's a whole new world if your right hand goes on strike and you are forced to use only your left hand…

 

For me the Star of David is about discovering new worlds: the bottom right triangle may symbolize the active voice in grammar while and the bottom left triangle may symbolize the passive voice – they are like arrows showing the way to opposite sides. There are whole novels written without a certain letter, but I didn't hear yet about a whole novel written in the passive voice. Usually we describe how WE ate the breakfast – not how the breakfast made its way down towards our stomachs… This kind of thinking shows you where you stand and opens new horizons of never-taken-choices.

 

I leave it to you, dear reader, to contemplate the possibilities of the up and down arrows and what's even more complicated – to imagine what the right and left DIAGONAL opposites could symbolize…

  

My Blook

What I'm writing here is more like a blook than a blog.

 

A blook is an online book. A blog is an online- something-else. But what is the difference, actually? If you take more than 50 written pages (of poetry, for example) and bind them - it's a book, right? If you have more than 50 postings on your blog and you print and bind them - it's a book, right? You may say that blooks and blogs have links while books are link less but it doesn't seem to be an essential or crucial difference.

 

I Once thought about publishing blogs in paper-back and I still believe that in the future some of the 30 million blogs or so will become books, but the main difference between a blook and a blog is the intention: a blog posting is meant to express itself, with no commitment to the other postings, with no overall architecture or message or order. It is more like flirt than marriage.

 

Usually a blog is like a diary. You write about something that you felt like writing, without putting too much planning into it. Then you write another posting that pushes all the previous postings backwards, and conquers the head of the blog page… until the next posting. When you look back at your, say, 10 postings you might see that there's a link between them, that they all talk about your girlfriend, for example, but you know that it's not a book.

 

Blogs cling on the moment, on the present – they have no special interest in the future or the permanent. When you read a blog that was written three years ago most chances are that it lost its edge (unless you have interest in history). Blooks aim at writing evergreen postings. In a blook that declares its bloogness there is some development, and the more postings you read the overall picture and concept become clearer. Nevertheless any blog that is composed of evergreen postings has the potential to become a blook or a book.

 

In my case I think I'll only have to choose the best postings, to arrange them in chapters, to convert the links to notes, to add introduction and bibliography, to print and bind and voila – the book is ready. I also have a name for it: The Star of David Blook.

Tobias Foa

Gershom Scholem mentions in his article about the origin of the Star of David (published in the Encyclopedia Judaica) that the Foa family was one of the book printers who used the Star of David as printers' sign and says that they incorporated it in their coat of arms.

Gershom Scholem was a professional researcher and had access to rare sources, so rare that it is hard to find them. That's why I was so thrilled to see a photo of a page printed by the head of the Foa family, Tobias Foa, in 1556. But unfortunately there was no photo of the other side of that page where there was (as the Kestenbaum Company auctioneers wrote):

"woodcut printer’s mark containing two rampant lions flanking a palm tree in whose center there is a Star of David, all within a cartouche; surrounding are the words, “A just man will flourish as a palm tree” (Psalms 92:13) and the name “Tobias Foa.”

Encampment of the Tribes

Dr. Gabriel H. Cohen from the Bible Department of  Bar-Ilan  University in Ramat Gan, Israel, wrote an article about Parashat Bemidbar which "is devoted to the array of the Israelites' encampment" . There were many ways in Jewish history to order the encampment of the tribes; Dr. Cohen mentions three of them and the third is:

 

"Jewish folklore describes the encampment of the tribes in the desert as forming a Star of David, twelve focal points being connected one to another, and all of these arranged around a central, thirteenth, focus--the Tabernacle and the tribe of Levi ministering the sacred service. A Yiddish anthology for the holidays describes the unique arrangement of the Israelite camp and its symbolism as follows:

  

According to this picture, the Star of David is the symbol of tribal unity in Israel, a single formation protecting the Sanctuary shared by all".

 

Photo is courtesy of the "project of Bar-Ilan University's Faculty of Jewish Studies, Paul and Helene Shulman Basic Jewish Studies Center, and the Office of the Campus Rabbi. Sponsored by Dr. Ruth Borchard of the Shoresh Charitable Fund (SCF). Published with assistance of the President's Fund for Torah and Science. Permission granted to reprint with appropriate credit".

The following paragraph is from Dr. Asher Eder’s book The Star of David, which was published in 1987 in English in Jerusalem by Runin Mass Ltd. The publication here is courtesy of Oren Mass

Other examples are:
- the division of the people of Israel into Cohanim (priests), Levites and the common people. In our context it is noteworthy that this tripartite people of Israel is meant to function in and through its land. The latter is an entity which is symbolized by the number four. This may indicate that the people is in constant development within the frame of the established physical world;
- the division of the Temple into three sections, the Holy of Holies, the Hall of the Altars and the Public Court. Also here, these three sections are placed in the rectangular temple yard, indicating the idea expressed above (during the forty years of desert roaming, before the Temple was built in Jerusalem, the same idea was expressed by subdividing the 12 tribes into four times three tribes the latter being placed into the east, south, west, and north sides respectively of the camp);
- the division of functions in the Kingdom of Judea into that of King, Priest, and Prophet (which pre-figures Montesquieu's demand that a modern state should divide its powers between the legislative, administrative and executive branches);
- truth, freedom and love as the three pillars of a sound humanity.

All these form power fields on the social, political or spiritual level, and these fields could each be depicted by a triangle.
In this context, mention should be made of Hegel's triad of thesis-antithesis-synthesis, which gives the above discussion a philosophical dimension.
Referring back to the hydrogen atom and its different probability clouds, we can derive an interesting lesson from it for our human society. As all kind of possibilities are inherent in hydrogen atoms, including the six-lobed pattern which may eventually manifest as six-pointed snowflake crystals, likewise in human society. Descending from Adam, its common ancestor, its different ethnical, cultural etc groups can develop specific cultural and spiritual patterns, including the one characterized by the hexagram, or Star of David
In the following we will trace the width and depth of this symbol’s message as well as the influence it could and should exert on society for its well-functioning.

Fallen Tabernacle

In 1944 the Nazis killed the 300 Jews of Crete and put an end to a continuity of 2300 years of Jewish life on this Island. The Etz Hayyim Synagogue in Hania was deserted until 1999 when it was restored. Now the synagogue is a resource center for tracing family trees; it has a library for studying Judaism, Christianity and Islam and it hosts exhibits. Most of the time there are not enough people for minyan (prayer quorum of 10) since there are only 7 Jews living today in Hania.

This story reminded me of the verse "In that day will I raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen" (Amos 9:11), even though the verse is about the rebuilding of the Temple in Jerusalem. It seems that the first half of the prophecy about the fallen tabernacle of David was never so accurately realized in history as after the Nazi period, and each little restoration as the one in Hania is a step in the fulfillment of the second half…

Sukkah is called so because of its cover (scach in Hebrew). This cover is all about protection (from sun and heat) the same as the Shield of David is all about protection. David is the seventh Ushpizin (visitor) to the Sukkah, and I feel that decorating the Sukkah with our 3D Star of David Sukkah lampshades will convey this idea of redemption…

Our Sukkah Lampshade Poster

SUKKAH LAMPSHADE

Three Dimensional Star of David

Original design of Yevu-Yashir

The six sides of the Magen David symbolize the six Ushpizin

Abram, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Aaron, Joseph

The Magen David in its entirety symbolizes the last Ushpizin – King David

Yevu-Yashir, Shimony 32/a` Jerusalem 97226785636 972522623345

shirbarkan@gmail.com

 

Sukkah Lampshade New Model Blue

This new model of our sukkah lampshade arrived yesterday. We hope that the shipment of the 3D folded paper sukkah lampshades will arrive here in time. Meanwhile we chose about 8 different colors.

I changed the "dull" realistic background with Photoshop. You can see the original and all the other models on http://www.flickr.com/photos/98026251@N00/

The Tattoo Controversy

I already wrote about Star of David tattoos but since then I learned that this phenomenon is [1] growing and [2] becoming more and more controversial. People want to take part in the debate. Michael Lerner, 42, New York-born who made aliyah to Israel in 1985, has a Web site titled Tattoos are Not for Jews. Soon enough he got a letter from an angry opponent:

"Why should the Nazi's have been the last ones to make a statement regarding Jews and tattoos? I love my Star of David tattoo. It is much better than gold, which could be lost or stolen".

Marisa Carnesky, 32, is a British performance artist. She is heavily tattooed and pierced. She has a solo show titled Jewish Tattooess. 

So, my dear reader, where do you stand? Do you have a tattoo already? Is it in the shape of the Star of David; the shape that can tolerate two opposite sides of a hot argument without breaking down.

Marc Chagall

Jewish artist Marc Chagall (1887-1985) came from a Hassidic family and that's why critics assume that paintings contain symbols such as the Star of David. In the Nazi period Chagall became a model of the "degenerate artist" and his

  "Most famous painting at the time, "The Pinch of Snuff," featuring a Rabbi and a Star of David, was dragged through the streets and exposed to public ridicule".

 In the Knesset (the Israeli parliament building) there's a hall, which is used for state receptions where Chagall designed a floor of mosaics. One of the main subjects described in this mosaic is the Star of David. It seems that this symbol is appreciated so highly that it enters naturally to the most distinguished and representational places in the country.

 The Knesset offers guided tours on Sundays and Thursdays between the hours of 8:30AM-2:30PM.

I hope to join one of these groups in the near future and take a picture of this work if it's allowed.

Messianic Shield

Nobody knows how the original Shield of David looked like in the past: It was never found in any dusty excavation; It was never painted or drawn by eyewitnesses. There isn't any written testimony about its look. All we have are modern versions about how it COULD HAVE BEEN LOOKED LIKE; for example the rectangular model Uri Ofir made for his exhibition titled MikraOr; or Arthur Szyk's lithograph entitled Israel (printed in 1949) in which we see Bar Kochba sitting next to a big blue Magen David holding in his hand a round shield with a yellow Star of David on a blue round background.

One of the theories about the origin of the Star of David is that during the Bar Kochba rebellion against the Romans in 70 C.E. a new technology was developed for shields so that behind the shield there were two interlocking triangles.

The translation of the Hebrew name Bar Kochba is the "son of the star". (His real name was Simon ben Cozeba, spelled also as Shimeon Bar Kosiba).

According to Jewish messianic expectations the Messiah is an offspring from the house of David. No wonder that in the past when a Messiah presented himself to the people he connected himself to the Shield of David. That was the case with Bar Kochba; that was the case with the Southern Iraqi Jew David Al Roy (aka Menachem Ben Shlomo), who started in the twelfth century a Jewish crusade aimed at conquering Israel by force of arms. That was the case with Shabbatai Zvi (1626-1676) who adopted the Magen David as his principle emblem.

The next Messiah will ride on a white donkey and I'm sure that in his hand there will be…a Shield of David.

Guards On the Walls of Jerusalem

 

In the past I read several times about Stars of David decorating the walls around the old city of Jerusalem. I even went to take a photo of the one that was supposed to be on the dung gate - but couldn't find it. Recently Rafi Kfir, lecturer and owner of the Ahavat Yerushalayim company, told me on the phone where are these Stars of David on the walls of Jerusalem. He told me about two places but I found a third one by myself. I enjoyed so much riding in the car slowly along the walls searching for these symbols...

 Anyhow I didn't know what's behind this phenomenon until I stumbled upon an article about Sultan Suleiman (1494-1566) the Magnificent who built these walls (1535-1538). 

It was Sultan Suleiman's messianic consciousness which led him to develop the link between himself and King Solomon. 

From the above excerpt readers may conclude that the Stars of David on the Walls of Jerusalem are not merely aesthetic Muslim decorations but that they are connected to the Jewish sources, to King Solomon.

Crystal Glass

Frankie Fox Jones, torch working crystal glass artist from Atlanta, Georgia, made some amazing Stars of David. She is a staff member of Frabel Galleries. In one of the three works I saw there is a Chai inside the Star and in another there's a Menorah. The height of each work is approximately twelve inches. The Stars of David Frankie Fox Jones created symbolize "strength and resilience of the Jewish people", hope and promise.

Hans Godo Frabel, who is one of the most influential glass artists in America, founded Frabel Galleries. He is famous for sculptures that make ordinary things look extraordinary.  Frankie Fox Jones surely walks in his footsteps.

Nostra Aetate

Today I got a Google Alert that referred me to a report written by Rabbi Matthew J. Eisenberg (president of Greater Cleveland Board of Rabbis) about an interfaith meeting with Catholic Reverend Richard Gerard Lennon at the St. John Cathedral.

 

"On the ceiling, just above the altar, is a beautifully carved menorah, and on the other side, is a Magen David (Star of David) carving with the word “adoration” below it".

 

The meeting proved that ties between Jews and Catholics are getting better and better since

"The Second Vatican Council (1962-1965) made sweeping theological changes culminating in the Nostra Aetate (In Our Day) document. It condemned all forms of anti-Semitism and called upon the Catholic Church to eliminate negative references to Judaism in its liturgies and catechetical texts".

It seems that the Star of David was drawn on the ceiling of the St. John Cathedral is part of the above mentioned new policy and that in this case the symbol represents Judaism (and not Israel, as in most anti-Semite cartoons).

 

A Kosher Conspiracy

The New Statesman published on the front cover of its January 2002 issue a gold Star of David standing on the center of a Union Jack above the headline "A Kosher Conspiracy". Inside there were two articles about this subject investigating the influence of pro-Israel lobby on British media.

The leadership of Anglo Jewry as well as Jewish and non-Jewish academics and politicians protested thinking this cover was a distasteful example of growing anti-Semitism in Britain.

Peter Pulzer, former Professor of Political Science and Modern History at Oxford University, suggested a test to check whether a certain statement is a legitimate criticism or an anti-Semite criticism. The New Statesman clearly failed his test. 

Pink Repression

In an article about Symbols of the Gay Movement there's a paragraph about the Gay Jews in the Nazi concentration camps who were forced to sew pink Stars of David on their clothes. 

My impression is that this piece of information is so repressed that when you search the keywords "pink Star of David" on Google images you get about 300 results most of them are gift items and not even one result that matches the intention behind this query. I believe the creators of these gifts weren't acquainted to the historic meaning of their labels; maybe if they knew they would have made their gifts in other colors or changed the labels of their products.

Elizabeth Olson wrote in the New York Times on January 4, 2003 about The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum decision to focus exhibitions on other groups beside the Jews, beginning with homosexuals. These other groups include handicapped, Gypsies, Poles, Soviet prisoners of war and Jehovah’s Witnesses. This first exhibition was entitled "Nazi Persecution of Homosexuals, 1933-1945".

Shield Verses

There's a lengthy discussion about Stars of David on the forum of Ancient Hebrew Research Center administrated by Miriam from Birmingham, England. Miriam wonders what we can learn from the verses about the Lord being Israel's shield: 

Genesis 15:1  

Deuteronomy 33:29

2 Samuel 22:36

Psalm 5:12

Psalm 18:35

Psalm 59:11

Psalm 84:9

Psalm 91:4

Psalm 119:114

Well, Miriam, IMHO the Star of David symbolizes exactly this idea: that the Lord is Israel's shield and not one's own strength.  King David defeated Goliath BECAUSE the Lord was his Shield. The struggle between the belief in physical and spiritual power is expressed in the clearest way in 1Sa 17:45:

 

"Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied".

 

In the Star of David one triangle point up while the other point to the opposite direction. The physical and the spiritual are opposites that live together in the same shape which symbolizes the unity of the opposites.

 

Pay attention to the fact that most of the verses come from Psalms which, according to the Jewish tradition, were written by King David.

 

Male and Female

My wife was so influenced by the content of this blog that when she needed to write a quick blessing for the wedding of her colleagues the first shape that jumped to her consciousness was the Star of David. After she finished drawing she added four words: "Bride"; "Groom"; "Two" (which sounds like to); "Gather" (which sounds like the other half of together). I understood this as a blessing for the bride and groom to stay together;like two triangles that become one in the shape of the Magen David.

The following paragraph is from Dr. Asher Eder’s book The Star of David, which was published in 1987 in English in Jerusalem by Rubin Mass Ltd. The publication here is courtesy of Oren Mass

As for the Male-female relationship, the Torah uses a different expression for animals than it does for humans. Concerning the animals, after they were brought forth from the earth each after its kind, the Torah simply says that they should be fruitful and multiply, with God's blessing. Consequently, Noah was to take into the ark male and female of each kind for propagation.
As for the human race, we read in Gen, 1:27: "And God created Adam in his image...male and female created he them", which implies that Adam is the spiritual archetype expressed in both male and female form.
Moreover, it is said that

Adam knew Eve his wife

  By this term, the Torah sets a standard for the human race which cannot be found in the animal kingdom. We would never say that animals know one another, nor would we use the word "love" for their relationships. The cock does not love the hen; the stallion does not love the mare; the bull does not love the cow. Even the relationships of animals or birds which stay together as couples, such as doves, cannot really be described as love. Love has a property of will.
Relationships on the animal level could be depicted by a line connecting two dots standing for the two sexual poles

Since the relationship of a human couple consists of much more that carnal instincts, we cannot depict it in this way. Humans have intellect and spirit, besides instinct and feelings.
It is by these properties that we are led on the one hand to a feeling of separation from one another and from the rest of Creation, but paradoxically why we also want to know and unite with one another.
If Spirit, intellect and feeling are balanced, we can depict the energy field they form by an equilateral triangle. In a harmonious love, the two triangles symbolize the two partners joining and interweaving as in our six-pointed star.
The Hebrew language helps to specify this relationship even more precisely. There, the word for man is איש , eesh; and for his wife it is אשה , eeshah. The word אישis characterized by the sign, י yod, which stands for hand, or strength; while the word אשה is characterized by the sign ,ה heh, which stands for the receptive, feminine aspect. Both signs together form the word ,יה yah, God, Lord, indicating that both aspects are united in the Cretaor of all, and should be united in a couple. The word yah is known to most readers from the word halleluyah, praise ye the Lord.

This diagram shows the togetherness and equivalence of man and wife, symbolized here by the two triangles, notwithstanding the different functions of both partners. However, if the Divine element as expressed by the word yah is missing in a couple's relationship, i.e. if י , yod, and ה , heh, are absent, only אש , esh, fire remains. This fire can be the fire of passion, which burns only as long as there is "fuel", or it can be the fire of conflict.

If the Divine aspect should be absent, or dim, in one partner, the Divine aspect of the other may bring about a (re)enlivening of the former, and restore the wholeness as symbolized by the star.
Marriage, like all other aspects of life, is not a fixed state of constant bliss; it is a constant journey towards oneness. Man and woman, who are two in our created world of polarities, are to become one again by their union: true Adam. Our star symbolizes this. Composed of the two triangles, it is yet one.
To sum up, the six-pointed star is the model of a harmonious balance of the poles of any field, as indicated by its two equilateral, symmetrically interwoven triangles. Each triangle plays a role, but has no priority or precedence over the other. This is true for the Creator-Creation polarity as well as for the polarities within the created world, including the husband-wife relationship.

Jewish Gang Symbol

I read the Sermon Rabbi Samuel M. Stahl wrote about the Star of David and there was the story about the Jewish Gang symbol: On August 1998 the board of Harrison Central High School in Gulfport Mississippi told fifteen-year-old student Ryan Green not to wear his Star of David since it might be interpreted as a gang symbol. 

Broken Star of David

In Tsarskoe Selo (Pushkin), 20 miles south of St. Petersburg, Jewish sculptor Vadim Sidur (1924 - 1986) built a monument entitled " “The Formula of Sorrow”, to commemorate the deaths of 10,000 local Jews during the Nazi occupation. The monument is comprised of abstract letters “J” and “D” denoting the word Jude. A broken Star of David completes the monument.

A broken Star of David appears also in the architect Daniel Libeskind design of the Jewish Museum in Berlin.

Leningrad Codex

The Leningrad Codex contains sixteen decorative geometric patterns of medieval Jewish art. One of them, the cover page, shows a Star of David in a square while the square is in a circle. There are Hebrew verses from the Bible around the star and the square, and in the center of the Star there's a dedication of the book to the writer's teacher.

The Leningrad Codex is the oldest surviving complete copy of the Masoretic text of the Hebrew Bible, written by Shmuel ben Ya'akov in Egypt in 1008.

Photo courtesy of Wikipedia entry: Leningrad Codex

Synonyms

The term Star of David has many synonyms and that's one of the obstacles on the way to collect information about it. These synonyms are sometimes relating to similar or even identical shapes in other cultures, which bear other meanings, but because of the similarity of the shapes people tend to label them with the same name. Life could have been easier if everybody used one term…

 Magen David (Hebrew) or Mogen Dovid (Ashkenazi Hebrew) or Shield of David or David's Star or Jewish Star (Judenster, Yellow Patch) is a six-pointed star created from two equilateral triangles and is known as the symbol of Judaism.

Solomon's seal or Seal of Solomon was according to Jewish Islamic and Christian legends King Solomon's signet ring that gave him the power to command demons.  It is in the shape of five pointed stars (pentagram) or six pointed stars.

Estoile is a six-pointed star with wavy rays. There are estoiles with eight points and others with four points like Cross estoile.

Mullet (or molet) is a six-pointed star with straight rays. In English it is heraldry with five straight points and in French it is heraldry with six points. Mullet of eight points is called octagram.

Hexagon in Greek means: having six angles; a polygon with six sides.

Hexagram is a six-pointed star formed by extending each of the sides of a regular hexagon to form two equilateral triangles.

Hexahedron is a polyhedron that has six faces (like a cube).

Chinese checkers is a board game for two to six people. Each player tries to jump his marbles from one point of a six-pointed star shaped board to the opposite point. It is not a Chinese game – it got its name in the United States to make it sound more exotic. 

Shatkona (Yantra) is an Indian yoga "superposition of two triangles, one pointing upwards and the other downwards, forming a star with six points, also known as David's Star. This form symbolically represents the union of purusha and prakriti or Shiva-Shakti, without which there could be no creation". 

Flag Proposals

Santiago Dotor edited a web page about the Israeli flag proposals in 1948. I found there a few interesting things about Stars of David:

1. Nissim Sabbah of Tel Aviv proposed two blue stripes, a white background, a Star of David in the middle and seven gold stars.
2. Mordechai Nimtza-bi proposed in a book entitled The Flag 8 variations, designed by Zeljko Heimer, which were not accepted. All proposals included a Star of David.
3. Oteh Walisch, graphic artist, proposed seven golden Stars of David.
4. 164 people participated in a competition announced on 10 June 1948 by the committee for considering the flag question. These participants submitted 450 designs. The text of the Call for Proposals stated clearly that each proposal should include "Magen-David, or seven stars (gold or other color) [but] any other proposal or idea would be accepted for consideration as well"

 

The First Hexagram

Dr. Dan Gazit wrote (in Hebrew) that the Magen David is one of the variations on the motive of the rose, which was prevalent right after the invention of the pair of compasses. There are no such roses on the Nabateans' ceramics because they used free hand and not compasses for making them.

I think when Dr. Dan Gazit says Magen David he means Hexagram. Uri Ofir claims that the origin of the Jewish Magen David is from the Tabernacle, but that doesn't imply that there weren't hexagrams before that.

According to Greek mythology Perdix, the nephew of Didalus, invented the first pair of compasses. Anyhow compasses seem to be here since immemorial time, and it's hard to pinpoint the date people started to use them, as well as it’s hard to trace back the first Hexagram.

Peki'in

On the Israeli 100 NIS banknote there's a picture of the synagogue in Peki'in, and a view of this western Galilee village. Peki'in is a symbol of the conservation of the Jewish ember since there are a few Jews whose families never went to exile. Parts of this synagogue are two thousand years old and there's a Star of David on its walls.

 I also found a Hebrew description of a travelers track to Peki'in where the author says that this synagogue was built in 1873, and its walls are checkered with remnants of stone relief such as: Shofar, Lulav, Etrog, pan and Magen David. 

 

 

Israeli National Photo Collection

I found a few interesting Stars of David on the Israeli National Photo Collection website:

1. On a Jewish national blue box, from USA 1960's.

2. On a poster for the 41 years of independence.

3. On a door in Peki'in village.

4. Formed by soldiers in the center of the Ramat Gan stadium during a rehearsal of the IDF pageant.

5. On the outfit of a Japanese boy belonging to the "Makoya" sect.

6. On the floor of a church in Rome, Italy.

7. On the Azrieli Towers in Tel Aviv on new year's eve, 31/12/2001

8. On a rock excavated at the 4th century synagogue at Samua in Judea. I found another photo on another website but here the description was slightly different: Eshtamoa synagogue from the 5 - 6th century located in the village of Eshtamoa near Hebron.

Magen David

After reading Uri Ofir's research about the origin of the Jewish Star of David my friend Avinoam Damari sent me a poem in Hebrew which I translate and publishe here - before the original poem will be published on a Hebrew website. I guess that's some kind of a precedent...

The Nation Knew the Shield Patch
David, Jakob, Israel facing the human oppressor
The nation knew the liberty flag
All the names were gathered to make a state.

Shield has a shape thousands of years old
Menorah, 40 years in Jewish desert
Sacred dwelling of a wise knowledgeable king
One menorah and ten white lilies.

Only in the holy land white lily grows
Six points the scent of kingship
Wonder menorah made by the Lord
Entered as an image of Magen David into a coin.

Cohen, Levy, king, prophet and the founder of the state
Knew sward, trial, wheat and water in the wilderness
Nation found a country deserted from symbol and model
Stranger's gate that imprinted the shield of kingship.

Fire, air, water, earth, these are the points
Man and the woman intertwined together for ever
Upper point looks at dreams and emotions
Lower point seizes the earth in purity and dirt.

Winds blow with direction and wisdom
One who will look will recognize a scent and a flavor
Hidden corner no one knows
Hidden deity hides a secret from human eye.

Magen David from immemorial code tabernacle and Menorah
Magen David from a flower, noble lily
Magen David before the sage's interpretations and applause
Magen David raised high in the flag Jews for ever will salute

Baltimore Hebrew Congregation Synagogue

Professor Jonathan Sarna wrote about the Star of David on his book American Judaism: A History (ISBN 0-300-10197-x) that German immigrants brought the star of David with them to America, and in 1845 it was built into the windows of the new Baltimore Hebrew Congregation synagogue building (pp. 106-07).

This is a clear cut answer to the question: when did this symbol arrive to America. I had less luck finding when did this symbol arrive to Yemen (although I called up a research center of the Yemenite Jews in Natania) or to the Cochin Jews (although I called their museum in Nevatim). Readers who know the answer are encouraged to comment to this posting.

 

Laser

Menahem Ben Ari Berman, Head of the Department of Silverware and Judaica Design in Bezalel Academy of Art and Design, Jerusalem, designed in 1985 a work titled “With All Thine Heart” for the Nerot Mitzvah Exhibition at the Israel Museum.

"It is made of six programmed laser beams that form continuously the Star of David in the rhythm of the heart bit, and is based on the idea of the copper serpent in the Wilderness as thought in the Mishnah".

Salt

I like websites that are dedicated to one subject (like mine). David Bloch dedicated his website to Salt. In a chapter titled "Religion" I found his description (and pictures) of the usage of straws in the shape of the Star of David to produce salt. For example: in the days Israelites had been in exile in Egypt, before the exodus.

Another example (and picture) is from Andrews, A. P. (1983) "Maya Salt Production and Trade" (Univ. of Arizona Press, Tucson).

 

Artifacts

Yair Davidiy sent me a list of links to those of his Brit-Am newsletters that mention Stars of David. In "Brit-Am Now 432" I found a very interesting info wrote by James Trimm about a bass relief sculpture of King Jehu and about a magen david with YAH written in Hebrew in it that  dates to the time of the Judges and was found at Gibeon (From the book THE NAME OF GOD by James R. Harris p. 205). 

Collage of Opinions

A month ago I quoted some interesting questions and answers that were published on Yahoo Answers regarding the search words "Star of David". I noticed that there were many ready made answers so that this time I phrased a question so that it will bypass this obstacle and get right to the point:

"What does the Jewish Star of David mean to you?

I'm looking for subjective answers - not copy & paste from some book..."

In a few hours I got 9 answers and I thank all those who took the time and made the effort.

The last three answers mixed the Star of David with other hexagrams like Yantra and Chinese checkers, which is very prevalent phenomenon. The others are quite varied and together they provide an interesting collage of opinions.

1. Aaron:
"Everything we live for".

2. Sarahmusicho:
"not a damn thing".

3. applechick282:
"To me, it is a symbol for my fore runners". 

4. Cookie777:
"I'm not Jewish, but I believe the triangle with the point on top represents man looking upward to God, and the triangle with the point down represents God looking downward to man".

5. nightstalker770:
"It means a lot to me cuz im jewish"

6. fbiagent2tha:
"As a symbol it has no significance for me personally".

7. kitchenchemist:
"now I think it is becoming a symbol of repression, not what was done in WWII to the Jews but of what Jews are doing to others".

8. little_momma_05:
"Sorry, I am not Jewish. It is just another pretty star to me".

9. Abram K:
"I believe it has the same origin as the Sri Yantra". 

Entrace to King David's Tomb

Today I went to look for Stars of David at King David's Tomb in Mount Zion, Jerusalem. 

I found one at the entrance. It looks pretty new…

Curtain at King David's Tomb

This is a curtain that is hanging on the wall at King David's Tomb. On it there are four Stars of David and a crown. The translation of the Hebrew words beneath the crown is: "The House of David Kingdom".

Jerusalem Train Station

Star of David above the Jerusalem Train Station building. Photo copyright: Zako 2008

Comics

Comic book superhero Sabra, Ruth Bat-Seraph, the heroine of Israel, has a Star of David on her headband. Sabra first appeared in Incredible Hulk #256 (1981) published by Marvel Comics. Her costume is based on the Israeli flag.

 Another comic book superhero published by Marvel Comics is The Thing.

On Ynet Uri Fink and Eli Eshed published The Golem comic book series. 

Gal Lusky

A year ago Gal Lusky founded Israeli Flying Aid, a non-profit disaster relief organization. Tens of volunteers were sent to help tsunami victims in Southeast Asia in 2005, Hurricane Katrina victims in New Orleans as well as other disaster area victims in Turkey, Georgia and Romania.

The organization's insignia is a Star of David with wings and it was designed to show pride in being Israeli:

 

"I am very proud of my country, and if I can come with its flag, I will," says Lusky" 

 

I will not be surprised if in one of the next five years Gal Lusky will light a torch at the Independence Day ceremony...

Micrography

Rabbi Ben-Zion Bar-Ami, The inventor of the "Word Sculpture", created a Micrography work titled Magen David the Story of David and Goliath (Samuel Chapter 17).

 The work shows a large Magen David that is made off 18 corners. Number 18 is a hint to the word Chai (alive). In this Magen David frame there are 18 small perfect Magen Davids; each of them has 18 lines. The spaces in the work symbolize the spiritual power of the nation.  In the center of the work there are 32 characters which build the 10 Hebrew words of the verse: The LORD [is] my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD [is] the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? [Psalms 27:1]. 10 symbolize holiness!

Photo of Micrography Magen David  is courtesy of Rabbi Ben-Zion Bar-Ami

 

Evil Eye Protection

Photo courtesy of "Kabbalah World"

 

On the web-site of Kabbalah World I found this Star of David that is used as a protector

against Evil Eye. There are six smaller Stars of David on its corners.  It is made of silver. 

It is also supposed to help "identify one’s mate, fertility, health, marital peace".

 

The State of Affairs

Photo is courtesy of artist Aviva Beigel.
Copyrights: Aviva Beigel 2007 

Aviva Beigel made a 95X109 cm Mosaic, Sand on Wood, titled Present Situation. In Hebrew the title can be translated literally as The State [of affairs] since it shows a large Star of David as a symbol of the state of Israel, and expresses what she feels towards the current state of affairs in it.

P.S.

Today, 30.05.2007 I got the following explanation from Aviva Beigel:
"PRESENT SITUATION"
X109 cm, Hand Painted Mosaic on wood.95
Two Hebrew words appear in the work:
"LAARETZ"-which mean –to the Land, and
"YEHUDI"- which mean Jewish.
Those two words give the complete meaning of Israel: the Jewish Land..
The present situation that I chose to show in this artwork, reflects the political situation in my homeland.
The War/Terror situation between Israel and the Palestinians creates a bloody land, not a land of "Milk and Honey".
The Israeli public is divided into 2 major groups: the group that support the continuation of the occupation, and the other that wants the occupation to be over..
Between the 2 groups there is a river of blood that tare us apart, even though
We all hurt.
Every pattern in the work is made from Ceramic, which I made myself and combines to a mosaic work of art.
You can see Jewish symbols as the "Menorah: and "Magen David"-
In red, blue, and yellow -to remind us our past: the Holocaust.
I included the airplanes and ships to symbolize our strength.
I spread some little stones as a reminder to the Jewish custom to put stones on the grave…

Recent Visitors

I like watching my visiror's tracker; it gets me closer to you readers. I can see where you reside (see the above photo) and I can feel what articles interest you the most and try to guess why.

Here is the report for the last 100 visitors:  

58 read the blog without entering a specific page

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1 Christians-for-israel.html

1 Bene Menashe-community-in-mizoram.html

1 Stickers.html

 

Spinning Star

Photo of a necklace with a spinning triangle is courtesy of Eric from Flickr.  When you spin it quickly it looks like a Jmagen David. Eric's Spinning Star is working on the same principle my twirling flag of Israel is working on, and that's why I was so surprised to stumble upon it. Something similar happened to me with the Jewish Clock that I thought I invented until I stumbled upon a photo that my predecessor took of his Jewish Clock...

Unity of the Opposites

The Star of David is made out of three pairs of equilateral triangles. The one above is not better or bigger or richer than the one below. When you turn the Star of David so that the above is below you don't see any difference. They are identical. They are the same. You may say the one that was above is now below and vice versa; you may say that the wheel turns.

The one on the right side is the same as the one on the left.  Turning them the other way round doesn't make any difference – they look identical; they look the same.

If you turn it so that the front is now the back it doesn't make any difference: they look identical, they look the same.

Above and below, right and left, front and back – these are representatives of OPPOSITES. There are other opposites that are represented by them: right (right) and wrong (left); rich (up the social level) and poor (down the social level); heaven (up, good) and hell (down, bad).

Now, in this world there's a constant fight between the opposites: those who feel down (like slaves, or workers) fight those who are up (like masters or owners), those who feel right criticize those who seem wrong.

In the Star of David they all live together in the same shape without hurting each other. In the Star of David they live in PEACE.

The distance between reality (fights and friction between the opposites, war) and dream (no fights, peace) is expressed in this shape which contains the opposites without taking sides – like the 24 hours that contain the day and the night without being any one of them; like the next world which contains Garden of Eden and hell without being any one of them; like exhaling and inhaling which constitute our breath.

Brewer's Star

It is a well known fact that the Brewer's Star on beer kegs, beer guild logos, beer cups - looks exactly like the Star of David. I read that there are many speculations about the meanings of this emblem, which can be traced to the 13th century in Europe and later in America:

1. It's somehow descended from the Star of David. There are even those who claim that King David was a brewer.

2. It symbolizes PURITY: brewers wanted to declare that their beer was pure of additives and adjuncts.

3. It represents the six aspects of brewing: water, hops, grain, malt, yeast, and the brewer.

Samuel Bak

Painter Samuel Bak expresses in his works his traumas as a holocaust survivor. His style is a form of surrealism. His themes deal with deep theological questions. Here we see one of his numerous paintings which "mention" the Magen David, The Ghetto, which interprets the Yellow Badge in a new light.

Picture is courtesy of Samuel Bak whom I met personally at his lecture in Binyaney Ha'uma in Jerusalem. Copyright: Samuel Bak 2006

The Israeli Flag Book

This is the cover of Uri Ofir's book, The Flag, which was published by Sefer Lakol, Tel-Aviv, 2001 Tl. 97235580111, 52 pages. The last 13 pages explain the origin of the Star of David.

Red Star of David for Sukkoth

This Red Star of David for Sukkoth is one of the models of our new Stars of David 30/30 cm which we expect to be ready for Sukkoth 2006.

White Star of David for Jewish Weddings

This White Star of David for Jewish Weddings is one of the models of our new Stars of David 30/30 cm which we expect to be ready for Sukkoth 2006.

Blue Star of David for Sukkoth

This Blue Star of David for Sukkoth is one of the models of our new Stars of David 30/30 cm which we expect to be ready for Sukkoth 2006.

Pink Star of David for Sukkoth

This Pink Star of David for Sukkoth is one of the models of our new Stars of David 30/30 cm which we expect to be ready for Sukkoth 2006.

Garden of Eden

Photo of a painting that depicts the Garden of Eden courtesy of Adam Rhine

Adam Rhine made a series of paintings based on the Star of David. He is an Illustrator and a graphic designer living in Illinois.  

 Adam sent me the following email:

As far as my absolute fascination and obsession with the Magen David, I'll give you the very shortened story: As soon as I applied my art to Judaica, everything exploded for me!  That was what I've been meant to do my entire life, yet didn't realize it until that moment.  Also, being "new" to Jewish thoughts and concepts at that moment in time, the first thing that came to me was... well... a Magen David.  You see the results on my website.  My series is not just about how I find it a challenge to see just how much I can get out of that shape, but a fan base and licensors has sprung up around my paintings, and the demand has kept me busy for 5 years running!  Calendars, a hardcover book, greeting cards, etc.  B"H!!! I am aware of some of the history of the symbol (DaVinci Code claims notwithstanding) and that it hasn't always been a Jewish symbol... but it is now, and I'll do my part in keeping it that way.

To Be Born a Jew

My dear friend Gary Brant sent me the following email:

"In the States I was always afraid of being Jewish and here in Israel it's not even a question".

  

To be born a Jew

What does this label mean?

Does it define the person?

Who is the person to define?

To be born a Jew

Why are we born anything?

 

The teacher asks the class –

Who is taking off

For the Jewish holidays?

Being the only Jew

I was afraid to raise my hand

Afraid of BEING… judged

Because Jews are hated

And it’s easier to hide

 

A jewish girl wore a cross

In order to fit in

Otherwise she would be hated

For no apparent reason

Other than a label

She too was afraid

Afraid of BEING… judged

Because Jews are hated

And it’s easier to hide

 

Who is this David?

Why does David even have a star? 

Is he a star?  Or just a legend?

The Star of David

Why has this shape become

Such a significant symbol

To so many people?

History, history, history… tick tock

 

It represents pride

Love, hate, strength, weakness, death

And in the end

It all comes down to fear

Because jews are hated

And it’s easier to hide

History, history, history… tick tock

 

 

There are people who simply

Love the history

Behind the shape

Then there are people

Who are attached to the history

OF THE SHAPE

OF THE SHAPE

 

Then there are people who simply

Love the shape,  love the shape

Finding beauty in its

Simplicity and depth

I on the otherhand identify

With it from the side of confusion

Because Jews are hated

And it’s easier to hide

Fear from being hated

For being born and labeled – Jewish

Tick tock…

  

The Tiniest Star of David in the World

Wendy Elliman wrote an article about nanotechnology on October 22, 1999. One of the achievements mentioned there belongs to Professor Jacob Sagiv, a materials scientist at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, who has built three-dimensional structures out of molecules, one of them shaped like a Star of David, each of its sides only one-thousandth the width of a human hair.

Nepal

On February 1, 2005 Nepal's King Gyanendra announced on TV news the dissolving of the elected government because it wasn't democratic enough. On his head there was a hat with a few religious symbols; one of them looked like the Star of David. This is an opportunity to ponder about the difference between the different appearances of the hexagram in different cultures.

 In order to decide which is which one must consider the context. If the context is Jewish the shape is a Star of David…the king of Nepal has a non Jewish hexagram while the flag of Israel has a Star of David in its center. It may sound absurd that the conclusion is dependent on the assumption - but isn't it a part of the charm of this symbol: as above so below. You can look at it from the center to the corners and the other way round, from the assumption to the conclusion and the other way round.

 

Ingathering of the Israelites

On the Israel Science and Technology Homepage I found an interesting interpretation of the Star of David as a symbol for the Ingathering of the Israelites. Dr. Semion Natliashvili created a drawing of Jews standing in the shape of a Star of David and reading from the Bible. Beneath them there are Hebrew words from Isaiah 60:4:

 

"Lift up your eyes round about and see; they all gather together, they come to you. Your sons will come from afar..."

 

The author of this web page added:

 

"The Star of David symbolizes the gathering of the Jewish People from all corners of the world including Georgia (country of birth of the artist)"...

 

I like this interpretation. One can look at the Star of David from the center to the corners and have associations of development and expansion, but one can also look at it the other way round, from the corners to the center – and then the above mentioned interpretation shows itself naturally. 

 

Shield of David Verse

King DAVID wrote in Psalms 18:3 "The Lord...my SHIELD".

This is not the origin of the shape - it is only one of the prominent verses where one can find the concept...

Candle Cup

Photos courtesy of Bill Finley who wrote to me the following:

We have developed a number of designs over the years and felt that if we were going to do a cross we should have designs for other religions as well so we started doing the Star of David and then added the Menorah to our designs.

Komar and Melamid

The Star of David is a shape, which means that it's visual more than verbal, which means that it's more plausible to find it in galleries than in scholars' books. This line of thinking led me to a "treasure" of sixty drawings and four large oil paintings made by dissident Russian-born artists Vitaly Komar and Alexander Melamid, exploring universal ancient symbols like yin and yang, the swastika, the serpent Ouroboros, spirals Kabbalistic spheres, and…the Star of David!

Richard McBee published on January 14, 2003 a long article in The Jewish Press about these postmodern provocative artists who made an exhibition titled "Symbols of the Big Bang" at the Yeshiva University Museum, New York. On the webpage of this article I saw four of Komar and Melamid most inventive works:

1. A drawing of a bird in the shape of a Star of David. The bird holds an olive branch. Around the bird there's an Ouroboros, a snake eating its tail.

2. Oil on canvas – a skull in the shape of a Star of David above it an hourglass, above it a clown's hat.

3. A drawing of a combined blue swastika and a yellow Star of David in front of a stone globe.

4. A drawing of a combined black swastika and a Star of David on a red circle.

I read another review by Donald Goddard who wrote about his deep reactions to the works:

Donald Goddard noted that Stars of David appeared in an earlier work of Komar and Melamid – the biographical series of 1972-7

Komar encourages viewers to experience the mystical healing power of the Star of David

Combining the swastika with the Star of David is provocative - but the fact that the artists are Jews (In 1977 they immigrated to Israel and from there to the United States) and that the exhibition took place in a Jewish museum enabled putting politics aside and concentrating on the universal meaning of these ancient symbols - the struggle between good and evil.

Lamel School

Edler von Lamel School is at Yeshayahu St. Jerusalem. It was built in 1903 and has a big stone Star of David above its entrance. Architect Theodore Sandler who passed away during the work designed the school; his son Benjamin completed the design.

Photographer Baruch Gian wrote an article in Hebrew titled "The best Magen David" about stonecutters in Jerusalem in the beginning of the 20th century. He claims that in those days the Star of David was the most common symbol to be engraved in stone. It appeared usually in the keystone, in windows and doors. All this happened many years before the establishment of the state of Israel…

 

 

Artists Delineate Territories of a Symbol

On March 1996 there was an art exhibition (Hebrew) titled "the Star of David: Israeli and German artists delineate territories of a symbol" in the Tower of David, Jerusalem, Israel. Batia Donner was the curator and 16 artists, 7 from Germany and 9 from Israel, showed how they see this symbol.

 The exhibition was based on another exhibition held in Germany to celebrate 30 years since the beginning of diplomatic relationships between Germany and Israel.  Among the artists were: noted Israeli press and art photographer Micha Bar Am, photographer Alex Libak, poster-artist Yossi Lemel and David Tartakover. 

Cooperation between Israelis and Germans is always under the shadows of holocaust associations, especially when dealing with this special symbol which Nazis used to humiliate Jews; that's why it was a poetic justice to choose the Star of David for the Israeli flag.

 

Architecture

The old Technion (College of Technology) in Haifa is one of the most impressive buildings in Israel. Its miniature is on the Mini Israel Park, which proves my point. Renowned German Jewish architect Alexander Baerwald designed it as a combination of east and west and Jewish motifs. Work began in 1914 and ended in 1924...

What attracted me to write about this building was the big Star of David high above the entrance. Albert Einstein was the Technion first president and he planted a palm tree in front of the building in 1923.

Questions

What is a Star of David? What is the meaning of its name? What is its origin? What is its meaning? What are its synonyms? What are its interpretations? What kinds of it are there? What is the difference between Star of David and mullet/ Solomon's seal/ hexagram? What is the meaning of the Star of David in other cultures? What is so interesting about it? What is the biggest/ smallest Star of David in the world? What is the attitude of different social/religious groups towards it? What is its influence? What is its past? What is its future?

 

When was it invented?

 

Where does it come from? Where was it invented? Where can I see it? Where can I find resources about it? Where is it published? Where were found Star of David artifacts?

 

Who invented it? Who used it? Who dealt with it: in research, in writing, in art, in science? Who loves it? Who hates it?

 

Why was it invented; to what purpose? Why do people use it? Why was it chosen for the Israeli flag? 

 

How to draw it? How do people use it? How much does it cost?

  

Logo

My definition for the Star of David is: logo of Judaism and in the term Judaism I include Zionism and all things connected to Israel. Today I found out that the above mentioned definition fits the theory of Shmuel Warshavsky, who wrote a book (in Hebrew) titled "to go with a logo" (Yedioth Ahronoth, 2005) where he claims that the many people who wear a Star of David show in this behavior their need to belong, to identify, like many other brands that people use in the frame of the new "brand religion".

The Star of David is used in the logos of many Jewish, Zionist and Israeli organizations and even non- Jewish supporters of Israel are proud to include it in their logos.A few examples: 

Jewish Agency

Doing Zionism - The Department for Zionist Activities of the World Zionist Organization

Hard rock cafe New York

Judaism 101

Mount Zion Reform congregation

Geometry

About two months ago I saw on television a program about the impossible geometry that Dutch artist M.C. Escher used in his drawings. There was a professor (I didn't catch his name) from the Israeli Technion who showed that this geometry is possible from a certain viewing direction. Today I found another work of the same Prof, Gershon Elber, and this time he deals with other objects. The one that interested me was the Hexagram. He shows how it can be built from two Penrose triangles. I was amazed when I saw the TV program and again when I saw this website!

The Penrose triangle is an impossible object. Oscar Reutersvard, a Swedish artist, was the first to create it (1934) but it's called after Roger Penrose, a mathematician who devised it independently in the 1950s.

Escher's work has a strong mathematical component and many of his optical illusions are based on impossible objects like the Necker cube and the Penrose triangle.

 

Pokemon

CNN.com reported on March 26, 2001 that Pokemon games and cards were banned by Saudi Arabia because it had ssymbols including the "Israeli" Star of David.  Pokemon (Pocket Monsters) is a Japanese video game (1996) that has a huge success world wide. It contains 386 Pokemons which the players have to capture and train.  

 

Anti-Semitism test

Ronny Naftaniel wrote an article about the "Report of Anti-Semitic Incidents in the Netherlands for 2002 and January-May 2003" and in it he quotes Peter Pulzer, former Professor of Political Science and Modern History at the Oxford University, who suggested a test to check whether a certain statement is a legitimate criticism or an anti-Semite criticism. Among the questions one has to answer in this test is the following:

 

Does the artist or television producer use the Star of David to identify Israeli military equipment?

 

Ronny Naftaniel adds:

This happened at the anti-Israel demonstration in Amsterdam on 13 April 2002. Some of the ca. 15,000 demonstrators compared Sharon to Hitler and equated the Star of David with swastikas.

My general impression after intensive reading about Stars of David is that we are dealing here with a symbol that is so powerful that there are millions of people who love it with all their hearts while other millions hate it with all their hearts. This dualism is the main theme in the design of this emblem: one triangle pointing straight to the skies (love) while the other is pointing straight to hell (hate). These twins accompany mankind from the dawn of history and I don't expect the sudden disappearance of any of them.

Khazars

David Dahan wrote  an article titled "Jews protest trampled Star of David statue". The article is about a monument to Prince Svyatoslav recently erected in Belgorod, a town near the Russian-Ukrainian border.  The monument shows a horse rider crushing the Shield of David of a Khazar warrior. The sculptor Vyacheslav Klykov is a notorious anti Semite.  

The Khazars (652-1016) founded an empire in the Northern Caucasus along the Caspian Sea and later converted to Judaism.

On the KHAZARIA IMAGE GALLERY there is a photo of engravings on a metal disc of the Star of David "unearthed at two Khazar sites, one along the Donets River in eastern Ukraine and the other along the Don River in southern Russia". 

Lemba

Steve Jones wrote in his book (" in the Blood: God, Genes and Destiny" 1996, Harper Collins, London. ISBN 0-00-255511-5]) that the Lemba people in the northern part of South Africa and the south of Zimbabwe,

 

"Have clear Jewish elements: Lemba do not eat pork (hence the name: the 'people who refuse'), are circumcised and often use biblical names such as Solomon. They lay claim to a secret language, Hiberu. The Star of David and 'elephant of Judah' are everywhere in their homes".

 

Jay Sand wrote  an article about "The Jews of Africa" where he mentions that the flag of the Lemba features a Star of David and the Elephant of Judah.