15 Tefillin bag
Printed by Avraham Mose Luncz
Jerusalem, cca. 1900
Printed, unhemmed cotton
Donated by Mrs Mór Bánóczy (Veszprém), 1910
Similar to the mezuzah, the tefillin is an object which contains fragments of sacred texts and is a reminder of the commandments of the Almighty. Adult Jewish men place it on the head and the hands for the morning prayer on weekdays. In order to store or carry it, traditionally embroidered tefillin cases were made, but there were some simpler and more affordable pieces too. In the early 20th century in Jerusalem the blessings to be said at the moment of placing the tefillin could be read on one side of the printed cotton case, as well as the rules to be followed; on the other side was a psalm shaping a menorah and in small medallions the Jewish sights of the Holy Land. All the inscriptions and ornaments were made with the same printing plates as the ones used to print prayer books, maps or cards, and the arrangement of the texts also recalls the prayer books.