Knesset Menorah
About Knesset Menorah
The Knesset Menorah is located at the edge of Rose Garden opposite the Knesset. It was presented to the Knesset as a gift from the Parliament of the United Kingdom on 15th April 1956 in honour of the 8th anniversary of Israeli independence.
Description of Menorah
It is a bronze sculpture about 4.3m high, 3.4m wide and weighs 4 tons. It was designed by Benno Elkan (1877-1960), a German-born British Jewish sculptor.
Design of Menorah
The engravings on the six side branches of the Menorah portray the fate of the Jewish people since it was exiled from its land. The engravings on the centre branch portray the people’s fate since the beginning of the return to the land up to the establishment of the State of Israel.
Interesting Facts
- The Knesset Menorah is patterned after the sacred lampstand that stood in the Holy Temple in Jerusalem.
- The sculptor spent almost ten years on the project, much of it in research, because he wanted to create a unique work which would tell the millennia-old history of the nation of Israel.
- Each relief illustrates the struggles and aspirations of the Jewish people and concepts from the Hebrew Bible and Jewish history.
