16th century Torah scroll that survived the Holocaust to be exhibited in Dubai

A Torah scroll that survived the Holocaust will be unveiled at the memorial exhibit in Dubai.

This is the first time that one of the 1564 Czech scrolls has been allocated to a museum in the Arab and Islamic world.

The number 48272 was tattooed on the Etzim (scroll poles) when catalogued in Prague where it had been sent from Svetla Nad Sazavou in Bohemia. This was one of over 200,000 items shipped to Prague and that survived the Shoah.

After being stored in the ruined synagogue at Michle outside Prague for almost two decades, they were sent to the Westminster Synagogue in London in 1964, who created an independent charity, the Memorial Scrolls Trust to take care of them. Some 1400 of the scrolls have been allocated to synagogues and organisations across the world.

H.E. Ahmed Obaid Al Mansoori, founder of the Crossroad of Civilizations Museum in Dubai, himself picked out the scroll at the Memorial Scrolls Trust in London along with the chairman of the trust.

“We  particularly chose a large scroll with very clear Hebrew writing so you could see it even from the back of the exhibition. It’s a scroll that makes  enormous impression,” Chairman of the Memorial Scrolls Trust, Jeffrey Ohrenstein, told Jewish News.

The event on Saturday is part of the museum’s commemoration of Holocaust Memorial day and will be attended by senior local and International dignitaries and addressed by the Israeli and German ambassadors .

“I feel very strongly that the Torah is the one thing that binds us all together. All faiths honour and respect Torah. And by having a scroll that survived the Shoah exhibited in a museum in Muslim country shows what is really possible. How people can be friends and respect each other. The museum reflects the diversity & tolerance of religions; personifying the legacy of Dubai and the UAE,” Ohrenstein added.

Edwin Shuker, Vice President of the Board of deputies, will be attending the ceremony on Saturday.

“This Torah Scroll survived the darkest period in our history and will now occupy pride of place in this unique permanent exhibit in an Arab Muslim country with a thriving Jewish life,” he told Jewish News.

The event will commence at 8pm UAE time 4pm UK time. Livestream on  https://themuseum.ae/holocaust2023