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The menorah (; (ヘブライ語:מְנוֹרָה) (:mənoːˈɾaː)) is described in the Bible as the seven-lamp (six branches) ancient Hebrew lampstand made of pure gold and used in the portable sanctuary set up by Moses in the wilderness and 300 years later in the Temple in Jerusalem. Fresh olive oil of the purest quality was burned daily to light its lamps. The menorah has been a symbol of Judaism since ancient times and is the emblem on the coat of arms of the modern state of Israel. ==Construction== The Hebrew Bible, or Torah, states that God revealed the design for the menorah to Moses and describes the construction of the menorah as follows ():
Numbers, chapter 8, adds that the seven lamps are to give light in front of the lampstand and reiterates that the lampstand was made in accordance with the pattern shown to Moses on the mountain.〔Numbers 8:1-4〕 The branches are often artistically depicted as semicircular, but Rashi,〔Rashi, Exodus 25:32〕 Ibn Ezra,〔Ibn Ezra, Exodus 25:32〕 and Maimonides (according to his son Avraham),〔Commentary on Exodus, ch 7〕 held that they were straight;〔Maimonides depicted them as straight in two separate manuscript drawings, but see Seth Mandel's alternative interpretation below.〕 no other Jewish authority expresses an opinion on the subject.〔See Likutei Sichot vol 21 pp 168-171〕 Archaeological evidence, including depictions by artists who had seen the menorah, indicates that they were neither straight nor semicircular but elliptical.〔Mandel, Seth (''The shape of the Menorah of the Temple'' ) Avodah Mailing List, Vol 12 Num 65〕 Until 2009, the earliest preserved representation of the menorah of the Temple was depicted in a frieze on the Arch of Titus, commemorating his triumphal parade in Rome following the destruction of Jerusalem in the year 70 CE. In 2009, however, the ruins of a synagogue with pottery dating from before the destruction of the Second Temple were discovered under land in Magdala owned by the ''Legionaries of Christ'', who had intended to construct a center for women's studies.〔http://www.regnumchristi.org/english/articulos/articulo.phtml?se=364&ca=118&te=782&id=27331〕 Inside that synagogue's ruins was discovered a rectangular stone, which had on its surface, among other ornate carvings, a depiction of the seven-lamp menorah differing markedly from the depiction on the Arch of Titus, probably carved by an eyewitness to the actual menorah present at the time in the Temple at Jerusalem. This menorah has arms which are polygonal, not rounded, and the base is not graduated but triangular. Representations of the seven lamp artifact have been found on tombs and monuments dating from the 1st century as a frequently used symbol of Judaism and the Jewish people. It has been noted that the shape of the menorah bears a certain resemblance to that of the plant Salvia palaestina.〔JTS (Taste of Torah commentary, 18 June 2005 )〕 Contrary to some modern designs, the ancient menorah did not contain anything resembling seven candles, as candles were unknown in the Middle East until about 400CE. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Menorah (Temple)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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