Wall sconces from Congregation Tifereth Israel (Columbus, Ohio)
1920s
caption:
Pierced openwork cast brass sconces. An intricate backing lies flush to a wall and the setting wraps around all three candles. The base of the middle candle is longer than the two outside candles.
In 1986, as the attic of Tifereth Israel was being cleared, the sconces were found and were sent to their new home in Cincinnati.
Identifer: CJF.2009.001.108
Medium
-
Topics
Ritual and Decorative Objects
Collection
University of Cincinnati Hillel Collection
Description
The first Jewish settler Columbus, Ohio, Judah Nusbaum took up residence there four years after the city was incorporated in 1834. The first congregation was established 26 years later, and three more congregations were established before the conservative Tifereth Israel was founded in 1901.
There is widespread consensus in the Columbus Jewish community that its origins date from the circumcision (brit) of J. Nathan Polster, the son of Louis R. Polster, early in 1901. The Hungarian Jews who attended the ceremony decided late in 1901 to organize what became known for a decade as the First Hungarian Hebrew Church. (Moshe V. Goldblum to Marc Lee Raphael, correspondence August 7, 1974, and Hyman Chanover to Marc Lee Raphael, correspondence August 28, 1974.)
The congregation moved to its own building at 330 South Parsons in 1909 after meeting initially at 392 East Livingston. The trustees purchased the Parsons Avenue property for $5,500. It consisted of two buildings: a five-room brick single facing Parsons and a five-room frame double on McAllister. The new building at the Parsons Avenue address was dedicated in September 1915. The Hungarian congregation grew slowly for many years.
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