Hanukkah is the eight-day Festival of Lights, commemorating the victory of Judah Maccabee's insurgents over the Syrian army in 165 BC. After the Temple in Jerusalem had been cleansed of pagan worship and the altar had been rededicated, only one vessel containing the ritual oil used to light the tabernacle was found. According to tradition, this ritual oil was sufficient, by a miracle, for eight days, until a new batch was produced (M. Siemieński, Księga świąt i obyczajów żydowskich, Warsaw 1993, pp. 73–74).
During Hanukkah, one more candle is lit each day in an eight-branched candelabrum called a hanukkiah, which is placed in the windows or in front of the doors of Jewish homes. The candles are lit by the eldest male in the family. During the holiday, one should not work or even study Torah. Fasting is also forbidden (A. Unterman, Żydzi. Wiara i życie, Łódź 1989, pp. 223–225).
The Hanukkah lamp from the collection of the Lublin Village Open Air Museum consists of eight spherical oil containers bolted to a base. An embossed decoration has been fixed to the backplate, the central point of which is an image of a seven-branched candlestick (menorah) with two antithetically placed images of lions leaning against palm trees. Above is a decoration in the form of a grapevine, and above the menorah (at the top) is an image of a closed crown. At the left edge of the backplate, an oil jug with a decorative handle hangs on a hook. Accordingly, at the right edge one can see a hollow hole in the bracket – this is a remnant of the shammes (i.e. an additional ninth burner). The depiction of the seven-branched candlestick and the lions are gilded. The crown is made of raw brass, and probably comes from another item and has been fixed here in place of the original one. The rest of the elements are silver-plated. On the underside of the base are embossed hallmarks: an image of a two-headed eagle, next to an illegible oval mark, an inscription in oval: "FRAGET/ N/ PLAQUE" and "III", as well as "1946".
The item was purchased for the collection of the Lublin Open Air Village Museum in the "Desa" Works of Art and Antiques store in Radom in 1985.