Heichal Wolyn Memorial Medal
1974
caption:
A message from NATHAN SOBELIt is my heartfelt conviction that peace for the world must be attained soon. In the past several years there have been both encouraging and discouraging signs, but in spite of the overall lack of success, genuine and sincere steps have been taken to achieve peace… by both the professional statesman and the common man.
If peace is to come and endure, it must become a widespread philosophy understood by all… not just a few. And to this end I have attempted to create in an indelible form a common ground of understanding… PEACE.
I desire more anything else that PEACE to contemplate… and understood… and put into everyday living by all mankind. My small effort to help achieve a permanent peace will be multiplied a countless number of times over if you will share PEACE with as many others as possible. Do not hide it away, but display it… study it… and discuss it so that what it stands for will become a lasting reality.
With this thought in mind, and to make my plea very personal, I set my pen to this message.
Identifer: CJF-RFC2013143
Medium
Bronze;Silver
Topics
Destroyed Communities
Collection
Holocaust Medals, Plaques, Tokens & Pins
Description
This medal is full of symbols and hidden meanings, numerology and insinuations, motions and Kabalistic interpretations. It tends to leave many unanswered questions, and food for thought. The spiral continues nonetheless, beyond the medal, since there are so many more names…The vanishing points and directions to G-d too, extend indefinitely beyond the medal, which accidentally is limited to a small circle.
The names were intentionally scrambled in a non-alphabetical order, so that the viewed, while looking for his town, would have to read and remember other names as well. Turning the medal to read the spiral, one’s head will advertently start to turn, interjecting a dizzy (vortex) mood. This was done intentionally; as this is not a medal of a happy event, but marks a somber, very sad, and dark period in Man’s history.
It is interesting to note that both the sculptress and designer are descendents from Wolyn.
This medal is listed in Hafner, Sylvia, (1978) Judaic Tokens and Medals, American Israel Numismatic Association, Inc., See medal HO – 7, pages 83 & 86.
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