Objects

A spice tower (besamim box) used at the end of the Sabbath during the Havdalah ceremony, which signifies the separation of sacred time from secular time. According to tradition, the scent of spice serves as compensation for the loss of the additional soul that accompanies a person during the Sabbath. Besamim boxes come in various shapes, such as houses or fish, but since the Middle Ages, the most popular form has been a tower. The presented fish-shaped besamim box was likely made in Moscow in the 1880s. It is made of silver sheet and consists of two parts: the head (container for spices) and a movable torso ending with a tail.