Introduction (page 2)
This exhibition and catalogue trace the common
manifestations of the khamsa in North Africa, and
especially in Morocco. Many scholars believe that
the khamsa's earliest iconographic formulations
were derived from Phoenician ritual implements found
in the area. The Phoenicians - or Punics, as the
Romans called them - spread out westwards through
Cyprus, Rhodes and the Greek islands to the northern
shore of Africa, to Malta and Sicily, Sardinia and
Corsica. They passed through the Balearic islands
to Spain and from there to the shores of the Atlantic
Ocean. The Phoenicians' goal was to establish strongholds
securing their trade routes to Spain and North Africa.
Their westward expansions peaked with her establishment
of the Carthage in the 9th century B.C.E, on the shore
of modern-day Tunisia.
Representations of hands, held up in prayer to a symbol
of divinity, appear on Punic grave steles found in North
Africa. Their discovery strengthens the assumptions that
geographic proximity influenced the visual representation
of hands: once part of a ritualistic heritage, the hand-image
eventually became a magical symbol in its own right. With
the Arab conquests of the 7th century C.E., Islam became
the official religion of North Africa.
Most of the khamsa included in this exhibition are from
the collection of William Gross, a Judaica collector
who traveled to Morocco in search of Jewish treasures.
He became captivated by the khamsas he saw in the
marketplaces and Jewish ateliers of Moroccan cities
and in the villages of the Atlas Mountains. The compilation
of many diverse khamsas into an exhibition and catalogue
offers an opportunity for in-depth discussion of their
varied patterns and ornamental motifs, as well as
of their most common uses. We wish to substantiate
the belief that the khamsa is rooted in an ancient
magical tradition. This tradition, which dates back
to pre-Islamic times, left its mark on Judaism, Islam
and even on our own contemporary folklore. We will also
try to understand how the khamsa form has mysteriously
endured despite the scarcity of gold and silver artifacts
made before the 18th century (objects of precious
metal were usually melted and recast).
From the 19th century on, fascinated European tourists
and travelers gradually became acquainted with the
lifestyle, attire and jewelry of North Africa.
Europeans developed a passion for Eastern exotica,
causing many exquisite creations to make their way
west into private and museum collection.
In the 1950s and 1960s, Jewish immigration flowed
into Israel in massive waves, especially from Iraq,
Kurdistan, Yemen, Afghanistan, Iran and North Africa.
Many amulets, small enough to be carried on the body,
accompanied the immigrants on their passage. Financial
hardship and the desire to be assimilated into their
new society caused many to abandon their cultural
legacy and replace it with a secular-Zionist way
of life. Traditional clothes were discarded, and
many immigrants sold off their jewelry and amulets
ended up in curiosity and antique stores, and
eventually became incorporated into ornamental
objects devoid of all magical significance.
Many of the older immigrants resented the transition
from their traditional societies to Western modernity;
they had difficulty settling into their new country,
and some underwent a crisis of identity. Their distress
sparked new beliefs in magical methods of self-protection
and healing. One effect of this process among the North
African Jewish community was the renewed idolization of
Jewish tzadikim (righteous men), a tradition rooted in
the Maghreb custom of visiting holy gravesites in times
of trouble. The rituals surrounding these saints called
for the use of amulets, especially khamsas, which were
gradually being adapted to their new social context
through a process of cultural reconstruction.
The traditional decorative motifs of North African
khamsas were replaced by portraits of venerated
rabbis and tzadikim.
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