The Temple menorah (/məˈnɔːrə/; Biblical Hebrew: מְנוֹרָה, romanized: mənorā, Tiberian Hebrew /ˌmənoːˈʀɔː/) is a seven-branched candelabrum that is described in the Hebrew Bible and later ancient sources as having been used in the Tabernacle and the Temple in Jerusalem.
Since ancient times, it has served as a symbol representing the Jews and Judaism in both the Land of Israel and the Jewish diaspora. It became the State of Israel's official emblem when it was founded in 1948.
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According to the Hebrew Bible, the tabernacle (Hebrew: מִשְׁכָּן, romanized: miškān, lit. 'residence, dwelling place'), also known as the Tent of the Congregation (Hebrew: אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד, romanized: ʔohel mōʕēḏ, also Tent of Meeting), was the portable earthly dwelling of God used by the Israelites from the Exodus until the conquest of Canaan. Moses was instructed at Mount Sinai to construct and transport the tabernacle with the Israelites on their journey through the wilderness and their subsequent conquest of the Promised Land. Based on 1 Kings 6:1, biblical literalists hold that after either 480 (Masoretic version) or 440 years (Septuagint version), Solomon's Temple in Jerusalem superseded it as God's dwelling-place.
The main source describing the tabernacle is the biblical Book of Exodus, specifically Exodus 25–31 and 35–40. Those passages describe an inner sanctuary, the Holy of Holies, created by the veil suspended by four pillars. This sanctuary contained the Ark of the Covenant, with its cherubim-covered mercy seat. An outer sanctuary (the "Holy Place") contained a gold lamp-stand or candlestick. On the north side stood a table, on which lay the showbread. On the south side was the Menorah, holding seven oil lamps to give light. On the west side, just before the veil, was the golden altar of incense. It was constructed of 4 woven layers of curtains and 48 4.6 m (15 ft) tall standing wood boards overlaid in gold and held in place by its bars and silver sockets and was richly furnished with valuable materials taken from Egypt at God's command.
The Migdal Synagogue or Magdala Synagogue is an ancient former Jewish synagogue, discovered at the ancient city of Magdala, close to the shore of the Sea of Galilee, in northeastern Israel. It is one of two ancient former synagogues that were in use in the Second Temple period, which places them among the oldest synagogues found in Israel.
Inside the synagogue first discovered at Migdal, the Magdala stone was found representing the Menorah, the seven-branched candelabrum that was located in the Second Temple. It's the oldest such representation in a Jewish context and one that appears to have been made by an individual who had seen the Menorah in the Temple.
Micrography (from Greek, literally small-writing – "Μικρογραφία"), also called microcalligraphy, is a Jewish form of calligrams developed in the 9th century, with parallels in Christianity and Islam, utilizing minute Hebrew letters to form representational, geometric and abstract designs. Colored micrography is especially distinctive because these rare artworks are customarily rendered in black and white.