• By Lazarus Posen 
• Frankfurt-Au-Main, c. 1890 
• 5-Piece Set: A crown (11.3”), shield (12”), pair of rimonim (13”) and a yad (12.2”). Silver. Parcel gilded and chased with classical and floral designs 
• Gift of the Briskin Family 

Temple Israel possesses 5 silver Torah pieces created by the 19^th century German firm Lazarus Posen. The firm was founded by Lazarus Jacob Posen, a silversmith and retailer of Polish descent, in Frankfurt am Main in 1869. Upon his death, his widow, Brendina Wetzlar, became the steward, the only such firm whose principal director was a Jewish woman. Her son Jacob L. Posen joined the firm by 1880 and opened a second shop in Berlin.  

The firm became the largest and finest supplier of silver Judaica in the late 19th century following all the latest continental trends, incorporating both Danish and Austrian styles. The name Posen today is as respected a silversmith as there were in Germany in those years.  

In the 20th century the firm was under the direction of Brendina’s grandsons Jakob, Hermann and Moritz Posen. In 1938, the company was forcefully closed and looted on Kristallnacht, the Night of Broken Glass). 

Our collection includes 5 pieces. Two Torah shields in our Sanctuary Ark were crafted in silver and gold in the 1880s and don our two Holocaust scrolls, the Czech Torah and our Nussbaum Torah. In the lobby case is a third Torah shield from the same period, as well as a silver Yad and two Torah finials from 1890. The Torah finials have 5 bells each and a silver flag on the top.  

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