Torah case. [Baghdad, Iraq or Calcutta (Kolkata), India], 1857.
Silver sheet, repoussé, pierced, cut and engraved; cast silver (unmarked); wood; copper sheet; ink and paint on paper; glass; without Torah scroll.
An elaborate early Torah case – one of the earliest Baghdadi cases known today – dedicated by the philanthropist Eliyah Gubbay, a wealthy Baghdadi merchant active in Calcutta. Judging by the design, the case appears to have been produced in Baghdad, but based on the identity of the dedicator (see below), it may have served in a synagogue of the Baghdadi community in Calcutta, India, or it may have been donated to a synagogue in his native Baghdad.
The case is coated with large repoussé silver sheets, fashioned in rich, repeating vegetal patterns, of the typical structure of Torah scrolls from Iraq. The decorative patterns contain oval medallions featuring a central flower in a vase – surrounded by dense vegetal decorations – and three horizontal strips decorated with a crescent and an eight-pointed star (the Ottoman Empire's emblem from 1844). The top of the case features a dome with a pear-shaped ornament, with bell chains hanging from it. Around the dome is an ornament in a repeating vegetal pattern. A long, narrow Torah pointer comes along with the case, half rectangular and decorated with geometrical patterns, the other half rounded and smooth, with a ring and suspension chain.
A dedicatory inscription is featured on the top part of the exterior of the case, repoussé in high relief with a nailed silver strip: "This case and the Torah scroll in it were made by R. Eliyahu Shalom [son of] R. Aharon [son of] R. Salih Gubbay, may G-d preserve him, Amen, [1857]". The interior of the case features other inscriptions, handwritten on decorated paper coated with glass. The right inscription features relevant verses from the Torah, and the left sheet features an inscription matching the exterior one: "This case and the Torah scroll in it were made by the reputable R. Eliyah Shalom [son of] R. Aharon Gubbay, may G-d preserve him, Amen, [1857]". The inscriptions appear within pointed multifoil horseshoes, and are surrounded by decorations in meticulous, colorful vegetal patterns, characteristic of the art of Islamic lands.
Eliyah son of Shalom son of Aharon Gubbay (Gabbai; 1829-1898) was the son of Shalom son of R. Aharon Salih Gubbay – a distinguished member of the Jewish community of Baghdad in the first half of the 19th century. Born In Baghdad, he immigrated with his father to Calcutta in 1840, and worked in the factory of Yechezkel Yehudah, eventually marrying his daughter Farha. In 1850, after several years of business in China, he opened a successful cotton and opium business in Calcutta, Eliyah Shalom Gubbay and Partners, which also served as a business agent of the Sassoon family.
Eliyah Gubbay owned many properties in Calcutta, and was noted for his wealth, which amounted to millions of francs. He donated substantial sums to the Jews of Baghdad, tzedakah and charitable institutions in Eretz Israel and educational, cultural and charitable institutions and synagogues in Calcutta, eventually becoming a distinguished member of the Calcutta municipality. His only son was the philanthropist Morris (Menashe) Gubbay, who married Luna Sassoon, daughter of Reuben David Sassoon. For further information on Eliyah Gubbay and his family, see enclosed material.
Height: 106 cm. Diameter of base: 29 cm. Overall good condition. Without finials or Torah scroll. Light warping and defects to silver sheets, mainly to edges, with some pieces lacking. Some tabs lacking from top ornament near opening of case. Some screws lacking. Warping and chains lacking from top ornament. Soldering around finial rods. Stains, moisture damage and tears to leaves with dedicatory inscriptions at interior of case, affecting text and decorations. Fracture to one glass sheet. Length of Torah pointer: 38 cm.
