The Torah Ark curtain (Hebrew: parochet) is usually made of velvet and is richly decorated. It is hung in the synagogue in front of the aron ha-kodesh, i.e. a holy ark, to store the Torah scrolls. Therefore, it symbolically separates the sacred from the profane. It is an equivalent of the curtain which, in the Tent of the Congregation (Tabernacle) and later in the Jerusalem Temple, separated the place called the "Holy of Holies". The Ark of the Covenant was kept in this room.
A strip of cloth called a kaporet is also hung on the parochet. The Torah Ark curtain itself consists of a piece of cloth decorated with raised, ornate embroidery depicting, in the central part, the Star of David, the crown of the Torah or a pair of lions, which symbolically support the Tablets of the Ten Commandments. Hebrew inscriptions are also included on many of the curtains. On the sides there are two thin strips of another fabric, which symbolise the columns in the former Jerusalem Temple (M. Sieramska, Parochet [in:] Polski słownik judaistyczny, Warsaw 2003, vol. 2, pp. 293-294).
Torah Ark curtain from the Education and Museum Centre "Świętokrzyski Sztetl" collection is made of brown velvet. On the front side, which shows wear and tear and stains, there are two Stars of David with inscriptions in Hebrew on the upper right and left side. There are also 22 small stars. On the bottom there is a 6.5 cm long fringe sash. On the back (curtain fabric), there is a brick-red trim with plant patterns (leaves and flowers).
