A ''parochet'' ( Hebrew: פרוכת;

Ashkenazi Ashkenazi Jews ( ; he, יְהוּדֵי אַשְׁכְּנַז, translit=Yehudei Ashkenaz, ; yi, אַשכּנזישע ייִדן, Ashkenazishe Yidn), also known as Ashkenazic Jews or ''Ashkenazim'',, Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation: , singu ...

pronunciation: ''paroches'') meaning "curtain" or "screen",Sonne Isaiah (1962) 'Synagogue' in The Interpreter's dictionary of the Bible vol 4, New York: Abingdon Press pp 476-491 is the curtain that covers the Torah ark (''Aron Kodesh'') containing the Torah scrolls (''Sifrei Torah'') in a

synagogue A synagogue, ', 'house of assembly', or ', "house of prayer"; Yiddish: ''shul'', Ladino: or ' (from synagogue); or ', "community". sometimes referred to as shul, and interchangeably used with the word temple, is a Jewish house of worshi ...

. The ''parochet'' symbolizes the curtain that covered the

Ark of the Covenant The Ark of the Covenant,; Ge'ez: also known as the Ark of the Testimony or the Ark of God, is an alleged artifact believed to be the most sacred relic of the Israelites, which is described as a wooden chest, covered in pure gold, with an e ...

, based on : :"He brought the ark into the Tabernacle and placed the screening dividing curtain so that it formed a protective covering before the Ark...". In most synagogues, the ''parochet'' which is used all year round is replaced during the High Holy Days with a white one. The term ''parochet'' is used in the Hebrew Bible to describe the curtain that separated the

Holy of Holies The Holy of Holies (Hebrew: ''Qōḏeš haqQŏḏāšīm'' or ''Kodesh HaKodashim''; also הַדְּבִיר ''haDəḇīr'', 'the Sanctuary') is a term in the Hebrew Bible that refers to the inner sanctuary of the Tabernacle, where God's prese ...

(''Kodesh Hakodashim'') from the main hall (''hekhal'' in Hebrew)Stinespring W. F. (1962) 'Temple, Jerusalem' in 'The interpreters Dictionary of the Bible' vol 4 p 536 of the Temple in Jerusalem. Its use in synagogues is a reference to the centrality of the Temple to Jewish worship. The

U. Nahon Museum of Italian Jewish Art The Umberto Nahon Museum of Italian Jewish Art ( he, מוזיאון יהדות איטליה על שם ש. א. נכון; it, museo di arte ebraica italiana u. nahon) is a museum dedicated to preserving the heritage, art and culture of the Italian ...

in Jerusalem houses the oldest surviving ''parochet'', dating to 1572.Jewish Italian Heritage Lives On in Jerusalem
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Gallery

File:Mühlhausen Thüringen Synagoge 90194.JPG, ''Parochet'' of the

Synagoge in Mühlhausen A synagogue, ', 'house of assembly', or ', "house of prayer"; Yiddish language, Yiddish: ''shul'', Ladino language, Ladino: or ' (from synagogue); or ', "community". sometimes referred to as shul, and interchangeably used with the word ...

File:Parochet Bielsko - pochodzacy z synagogi Maharszala.jpg, Original ''parochet'' from Great

Lublin Lublin is the ninth-largest city in Poland and the second-largest city of historical Lesser Poland. It is the capital and the center of Lublin Voivodeship with a population of 336,339 (December 2021). Lublin is the largest Polish city east of t ...

Maharshal's synagogue from 1926, today in Bielsko-Biała synagogue, Poland File:Parochet (torah curtain) with Hebrew inscription from Psalms CXVIII-20, Egypt, Cairo, Ottoman Empire, early 1600s, wool - Textile Museum, George Washington University - DSC09735.JPG, Early-17th-century ''parochet'' from Cairo, Egypt File:Leah Ottolenghi - Torah Ark Curtain - Google Art Project.jpg, 1698 linen and silk ''parochet'' from Venice, Italy File:Hurva Synagogue P1140558.JPG, ''Parochet'' in the Hurva Synagogue in Jerusalem File:Parochet from 1797.jpg, ''Parochet'' from 1797, Jewish Museum of Switzerland. File:Synagogue curtain.jpg, ''Parochet'' in the Synagogue at 770 Eastern Parkway

References

{{reflist Synagogue architecture Jewish ritual objects