We have therefore brought an oblation for YAHWEH, what every man has gotten, of jewels of gold, chains, and bracelets, rings, earrings, and tablets, to make an atonement for our souls before YAHWEH. And Moshe and Eleazar the Cohen took the gold of them, even all wrought jewels. And all the gold of the offering that they offered up to YAHWEH, of the captains of thousands, and of the captains of hundreds, was sixteen thousand seven hundred and fifty shekels. (For the men of war had taken spoil, every man for himself.) And Moshe and Eleazar the Cohen took the gold of the captains of thousands and of hundreds, and brought it into the tabernacle of the congregation, for a memorial for the children of Israel before YAHWEH. (BEMIDBAR - NUMBERS 31:50 – 31:54).

And he shall deliver their kings into your hand, and you shall destroy their name from under heaven: there shall no man be able to stand before you, until you have destroyed them. The graven images of their gods shall you burn with fire: you shall not desire the silver or gold that is on them, nor take it unto you, lest you be snared therein: for it is an abomination to YAHWEH your ABBA. Neither shall you bring an abomination into your house, lest you be a cursed thing like it: but you shall utterly detest it, and you shall utterly abhor it; for it is a cursed thing.( DEVARIM - DEUTERONOMY 7:24 – 7:26).

One of the most ancient forms of expression, art of jewelry embodies rich spiritual and applied experience of processing historical and cultural information. Modern art historians pose many questions regarding this process and its mechanics. This paper attempts to solve these questions using the following conceptual scheme:

A         B

1) The art of jewelry making is the product and indication of a material and socio-cultural development of society.

A: The level of material development: metal processing plus decorating (handling) with precious stones – prerequisites for the tangible basis for the art; hierarchy of precious metals and stones; jewelry art=goods=money.

B: development of ritual conscience in decorative-ornamental and plastic means; social hierarchy/ ethnic differentiation/ + hierarchy of metals = attributive side of art; protective/suggestive-symbolic/ = handcraft and artistic functions = content-rich area of art.

As one can see from the above scheme, both groups, A and B, while having autonomous qualities, develop in parallel. The common ground is social hierarchy along with the hierarchy of metals. As a result, the art of jewelry symbolizes one of the most ancient examples of organic art fusion – handcraft, ritual and commerce. Art has its own language, filled with specific grammatical instances of foundation of shape and ornament. We suggest that one of the defining factors of material culture is based on the symbiosis of the Oriental devotion to complex rituals of poetic behavior, luxury and splendor of décor, with the European figurative vision of art. The Holy Scriptures, including texts from the Torah, serve as an invaluable source of understanding of how art language matures.

The Pentateuch, or the writings of the Torah, was combined into one volume approximately in the 5 century BC. Most of the text was written in 9-7 centuries BC. Events described in the Torah paint a universal picture of the universe and reflect the syncretism of artistic and ritual consciousness of men in the early civilizations. Scientists believe that historical events described in the books of the Torah (Bereishet, Shemot, Vayikra, Bamidbar, Devarim) happened in the second half of the II millennium BC, allegedly during the rule of the 19 dynasty in Egypt (1305-1196 BC). Archeological excavations, as well as ethnographical findings, validate the parts of the Torah where the art of jewelry is mentioned.

Literature dedicated to the history of Israeli jewelry is based mostly upon archeological research (see 11); works of popular science nature, as well as challenging and debatable publications (see 12). History of jewelry is still waiting to be studied in earnest; this much-needed fundamental research is all the more needed, considering that the art of the ancient jewelers developed in a single stylistic movement with other forms of art. Thus, the artistic style of the era reflected the puzzle –the mosaic structure of the mutual influence the peoples residing on the territory of ancient Israel and bordering countries had on each other.

Historical interpretation of sacred texts of the Torah is the main objective of this article. We believe that, based on the vast amount of sources, it is possible to take a different approach to the art of jewelry as a socio-artistic phenomenon of the ancient civilizations, including the formation of early government in Israel. This resource-rich method of studying the sacred texts of the Torah does not contradict the humanistic nature of secular Judaism. This method complements the basic flow of modern historical thinking, which offers rich interpretations of the Torah (including the Old and New Testaments) from the point of view of paleographical, archeological and hermeneutic research (1, 2), as well as from the point of view of historical and chronological objectivity (4, 5). The modern historians read the Torah as an inventive collection of information related to different forms of art, including the art of jewelry making. This article is centered on the following aspects of the emergent art of jewelry making:

1. Material side of creation that distinguishes jewelry making as a specific form of art.
2. Craft of ancient masters within developing network of connections and emerging types of art.
3. Cost/commodity/value/esthetic aspects of items fashioned out of metal.
4. Jewelry items as symbols and attributes of social and ritual characteristics of human behavior.
5. Questions of ambivalent interpretation of items of luxury (jewelry) in the Torah – difference between acceptance and taboo.

All the above mentioned aspects have a firm historical platform and are therefore connected to the historical and archeological analysis, particularly, study of periods, chronology and attribution.