The position of women in Judaism has always been very high, although this was neither due to their functions nor to positions to which they did not have access. Their role as caretakers of homes raising future generations placed them among the first teachers of religion and customs. Women were first and foremost the guardians of traditional values, domesticity and biblical commandments (https://kobieta.interia.pl/gwiazdy/news-status-kobiety-w-judaizmie,nId,409646, access: 16 March 2021). However, there have been prophetesses, great queens, charismatic leaders and saviours of the nation throughout history. Many prominent female figures made their mark on the Hebrew Bible. It should also be remembered that descent in Judaism is inherited from the mother, not the father, although men recite a thanksgiving blessing every morning for the fact that God did not make them female (A. Untermann, Encyklopedia tradycji i legend żydowskich, Warsaw 1994, pp. 146–147).
In modern strands of Judaism, women are entitled to greater equality in public religious life, but one of the restrictions they were subject to was staying in a specially designated area in the synagogue. The women's gallery was usually located at the back of the prayer room or in the gallery. In the past, just like in Christian temples, synagogue seats were purchased.
An annual card confirming the purchase of a seat in the local synagogue for the wife of Moses Sachs has been preserved in the collection of the District Museum in Leszno. The card is numbered "167" and was valid from 1 September 1909 to 1 September 1910. Ten marks were paid for the right to use the armchair, and the payment was receipted by the municipal tax collector, Samuel Ansorge. On the reverse side, there are regulations for the use of the seat. The blank form was printed and filled out in German, on thin olive-coloured paper.
Marianna Sachs (née Biow) was born on 6 July 1832 in Leszno. She was the daughter of the local merchant Jakub and Karolina (née Hannach). She died on 27 April 1923 in her flat at what was then 32 Kościańska Street (ul. Kościańska 32), at the age of 90.
The document was donated to the Leszno museum in the 1980s or 1990s by Zdzisław Sosnowski from Lasocice near Leszno. The card was listed in the auxiliary inventory. In 2019, it was transferred to the main inventory of historical collections. In 2020, the document underwent conservation.
Dariusz Czwojdrak