"Spoon bending Spoon bending is the apparent deformation of objects, especially metal cutlery, either without physical force, or with less force than would normally seem necessary. It is a common form of stage magic, and a variety of methods are used to produce the illusion. Spoon bending attracted considerable media attention in the 1970s when some people claimed to have the ability to cause such events by paranormal psychic means. The most notable was Uri Geller, who performed by bending metal spoons as well as metal keys and several other objects and materials. Geller's performances were attributed to stage magic"
"have been a miner. Tubal-cain Tubal-cain or Tubalcain (, ""Tūḇal Qayin"") is a person mentioned in the Bible, in as well as in the Hebrew Book of Jasher, known for being the first blacksmith. A descendant of Cain, he was the son of Lamech and Zillah. He was the brother of sister Naamah and half-brother of Jabal and Jubal. In Hebrew, his name is (""Tūḇal Qayin""). In the King James Version, this is rendered as ""Tubalcain"". In the New International Version and the English Standard Version, it is ""Tubal-cain"". Rashi interprets the name to mean ""he who spices the craft"
"Tubal-cain Tubal-cain or Tubalcain (, ""Tūḇal Qayin"") is a person mentioned in the Bible, in as well as in the Hebrew Book of Jasher, known for being the first blacksmith. A descendant of Cain, he was the son of Lamech and Zillah. He was the brother of sister Naamah and half-brother of Jabal and Jubal. In Hebrew, his name is (""Tūḇal Qayin""). In the King James Version, this is rendered as ""Tubalcain"". In the New International Version and the English Standard Version, it is ""Tubal-cain"". Rashi interprets the name to mean ""he who spices the craft of Cain."" It is"
"Aviv, gestione the poet Hayim Nahman Bialik, particularly for the dissemination of knowledge of Judaism in all its branches. Bloom died and was buried in Tel Aviv in 1941. The singer Danny Maseng is his great-grandson. Samuel S. Bloom Samuel S. Bloom (Hebrew: שמואל (סם) בלום) (December 25, 1860 - October 10, 1941) was a U.S. Jewish Zionist leader and industrialist and innovator in the field of dentures. Bloom was born in Ukmergė, Lithuania, into a religious Jewish family. In 1882, he immigrated to United States of America. He established a manufacturing plant Dentures in Philadelphia and was a member"
"Israel. Oded Golan Oded Golan () (born 1951 in Tel Aviv) is an Israeli engineer, entrepreneur, and antiquities collector. He owns one of the largest collections of Biblical archaeology in the world. Some of the artifacts in his collection have produced great excitement in religious and archaeological circles, including the James Ossuary (the bone box of James, brother of Jesus), which achieved international fame in 2002, after world-renowned experts confirmed the authenticity of the writing inscribed on it. Another famous item from Golan's collection is the Jehoash Tablet, a monumental 16-line commemorative inscription in ancient Hebrew. After its publication, the"
"headed the Tobe Pascher Workshop for Modern Jewish Art at the Jewish Museum in New York City. Ludwig Yehuda Wolpert Ludwig Yehuda Wolpert (Yehuda Wolpert), (7 October 1900 - 6 November 1981) was an Israeli-American goldsmith and designer, born in Germany. He is celebrated as the first artist to design Judaica in modern styles. Ludwig Yehuda Wolpert was born in a small village near Heidelberg, Germany to a poor religious orthodox family. During his childhood he suffered as a result of his family's Lithuanian (immigrant) origin and was often teased because of his cleft lip. In 1916-1920, he began his"
"Nehemia Azaz Nehemia Azaz (), also Nehemiah, Henri or N H Azaz (9 October 1923 – 27 October 2008), was an Israeli sculptor, ceramicist and architectural artist, who spent half of his working life in the UK. Best known in Israel as founder of the Department of Artistic Ceramics at the Harsa factory in Beersheba, Azaz made his studio base in Oxfordshire, England from the late 1960s onwards, working in stained glass, wood, concrete, bronze, brass, copper and aluminium. Born in 1923 and taken to Palestine at an early age, Azaz's early career developed alongside, and in relation to, the"
"Ludwig Yehuda Wolpert Ludwig Yehuda Wolpert (Yehuda Wolpert), (7 October 1900 - 6 November 1981) was an Israeli-American goldsmith and designer, born in Germany. He is celebrated as the first artist to design Judaica in modern styles. Ludwig Yehuda Wolpert was born in a small village near Heidelberg, Germany to a poor religious orthodox family. During his childhood he suffered as a result of his family's Lithuanian (immigrant) origin and was often teased because of his cleft lip. In 1916-1920, he began his studies in sculpture at the Frankfurt School of Art. In 1925-1928, he studied goldsmithing at the Frankfurt"
"of sheets printed. This machine was later used to print banknotes. Despite his designs and inventions Staffel died, as he was born, in poverty. Izrael Abraham Staffel Izrael Abraham Staffel (1814–1884) was a Polish inventor, watchmaker, mechanic, designer of calculating machines. Staffel was born in 1814 in Warsaw to an impoverished Jewish family. He received an elementary education in a Jewish school and was then sent to a watchmaker to continue his education. He taught himself Polish in order that he could read technical educational books. Then in 1833 at the age of 19 he received a concession to open"
"we can see this renewed interest in pottery and in the materials of ceramics to emphasize the work processes used in the creation of artistic objects. In spite of massive training in the technology of design, the disappearance of the ceramics industry in Israel pushed artists, and particularly designers, to the creation of individual objects or of objects in small series, and sometimes in large ones, using hand casting techniques. The most prominent of these artists are designers such as Ami Derech, Dov Ganchrow, and Jonathan Hopp. Israeli ceramics Israeli ceramics are ceramics designed either in Palestine or Israel from"
"Rabbi Nehemiah Rabbi Nehemiah was an Israelite mathematician, circa AD 150 (during the Tannaim era, Fourth Generation). He is attributed as the author of the ""Mishnat ha-Middot"" (ca. AD 150), making it the earliest known Hebrew text on geometry, although some historians assign the text to a later period by an unknown author. The ""Mishnat ha-Middot"" argues against the common belief that the Bible defines the geometric ratio (pi) as being exactly equal to 3, based on the description in 1 Kings 7:23 (and 2 Chronicles 4:2) of the great bowl situated outside the Temple of Jerusalem as having a"
"as ""smiths"", able to master the four iron horns, as symbolizing nations used as instruments of divine power for the destruction of Israel's enemies. Four Horns and Four Craftsmen The Four horns and Four carpenters are a vision found in Book of Zechariah, in Zechariah 1:21 in traditional English texts. In Hebrew texts 1:18-21 is numbered 2:1-4. The vision precedes the vision of A Man With a Measuring Line. http://www.mechon-mamre.org/p/pt/pt2302.htm The four craftsmen are discussed in Babylonian Talmud Suk. 52b. Rav Hana bar Bizna attributed to Rav Simeon Hasida the identification of these four craftsmen as Messiah ben David, Messiah"
"It was first identified by archaeologist Nelson Glueck in the 1930s-1940s. Edomite pottery Edomite pottery, also known as 'Busayra Painted Ware' and 'Southern Transjordan-Negev Pottery' (STNP), is the name given to several ware types found in archaeological sites in southern Jordan and the Negev dated to the 7th and 6th centuries BCE. It is attributed to the Biblical people of the Edomites. It consists of several ware types, of which the most representative ones are the plain wares, usually kraters and bowls with a denticulated fringe applied around the vessel; bowls with red and black-painted geometric decorations; cooking-pots with a"
"of Israeli artists. A whole group of artists such as David Ben Shaul, Agi Yoeli, David Calderon, Moshe Shek, and Shelly Harari, in addition to their ceramic works, produced during this period human sculptures or animal images inspired by figurines and statuettes from antiquity. Their works included a pioneering Zionist element that expressed an attempt to connect the young Israeli state with its historical and biblical past. At the same time, Israeli ceramicists showed a tendency toward modernism, which emphasized the geometric character of the shape and the work and showed the influence of European modernism. Most of the characteristics"
"Judah Hadassi Judah ben Elijah Hadassi (in Hebrew, Yehuda ben Eliyahu) was a Karaite Jewish scholar, controversialist, and liturgist who flourished at Constantinople in the middle of the twelfth century. He was known by the nickname ""ha-Abel,"" which signifies ""mourner of Zion."" Neubauer thinks that ""Hadassi"" means ""native of Edessa"" Nothing of Hadassi's life is known except that he was the pupil of his elder brother Nathan Hadassi. He dealt with Hebrew grammar, Masorah, theology, and philosophy, and knew Arabic and Greek well. Hadassi acquired his reputation by his treatise ""Eshkol ha-Kofer"" or ""Sefer ha-Peles"", on which he began work"
"said to have lured him into their fields believing his feet would bring blessing to their crops. His son-in-law was Rabbi Mendel Zaks. Israel Meir Kagan Israel Meir (HaKohen) Kagan (January 26, 1839 – September 15, 1933), known popularly as the Chofetz Chaim (Hebrew: חפץ חיים, ""Hafetz Chaim""), was an influential rabbi of the Musar movement, a Halakhist, posek, and ethicist whose works continue to be widely influential in Jewish life. The Chofetz Chaim was born in Dzyatlava, Grodno Governorate, Russian Empire (today Belarus), on January 26, 1839, and died in Radun', Wilno Province in Poland (now Belarus) on September"
"Simeon bar Yochai Simeon bar Yochai (Aramaic: רבן שמעון בר יוחאי, ""Rabban Shimon bar Yoḥai""), also known by his acronym Rashbi, was a 2nd-century ""tannaitic"" sage in ancient Judea, said to be active after the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE. He was one of the most eminent disciples of Rabbi Akiva, and attributed by many Orthodox Jews with the authorship of the Zohar, the chief work of Kabbalah. In addition, important legal homilies called ""Sifre"" and ""Mekhilta"" are attributed to him (not to be confused with the Mekhilta of Rabbi Ishmael, of which much of the text"
"Oded Golan Oded Golan () (born 1951 in Tel Aviv) is an Israeli engineer, entrepreneur, and antiquities collector. He owns one of the largest collections of Biblical archaeology in the world. Some of the artifacts in his collection have produced great excitement in religious and archaeological circles, including the James Ossuary (the bone box of James, brother of Jesus), which achieved international fame in 2002, after world-renowned experts confirmed the authenticity of the writing inscribed on it. Another famous item from Golan's collection is the Jehoash Tablet, a monumental 16-line commemorative inscription in ancient Hebrew. After its publication, the date"
"Rabbi Yannai Rabbi Yannai (or Rabbi Jannai; , read as ""Rabbi Yannai"") was a Jewish sage, living during the first half of the 3rd century, and of the first generation of the Amora sages of the Land of Israel. He was a disciple of R. Judah haNasi - the sealer of the Mishnah. R. Yannai founded a Beth midrash in 'Akbara that was located, at the time, nearby Safed in the Upper Galilee, where he taught the Torah, and at the same time served as a dayan, religious judge, on the Beth din, rabbinical court in Sepphoris community. Among his"
"Yoel Teitelbaum (who was most impressed by the ""sefer"" but had a rule that he didn't give approbations), Rabbi Nachum Wiedenfeld of Dombrova, Poland (brother of the Tchebiner Rav) and Rabbi Avrohom Elyashiv (father of Rabbi Yosef Shalom Eliashiv). He invented one of the first vending machines. For a penny it dispensed candy and a fortune card, and a monkey tipped his hat. He also developed a parve shortening made of coconut oil, and a device to keep food from burning. Patents were issued for many of his inventions. After World War II began, recognizing that lice was a serious"
"in Jerusalem. In 1993, he was honored by the Technion in Haifa. Israel Polack Israel Pollak (; 1909–1993) was an Austro-Hungarian-born Romanian, Chilean and Israeli textile industrialist. He is best known for founding the Israel-based ""Polgat"" company. Israel Pollak was born to a Jewish Orthodox family in Borşa, east Maramureș. In 1925, he moved to Gura Humorului, Bukovina, and later to Cernăuţi. While in Cernăuţi, he studied at ""yeshiva"" and at a textile plant. In 1935, he founded an enterprise of its kind in the city. After World War II, he emigrated to Chile where his brother Marcos had emigrated"
"He, has given three gifts to Israel: Torah, the Land of Israel, and the world to come. Simeon bar Yochai Simeon bar Yochai (Aramaic: רבן שמעון בר יוחאי, ""Rabban Shimon bar Yoḥai""), also known by his acronym Rashbi, was a 2nd-century ""tannaitic"" sage in ancient Judea, said to be active after the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE. He was one of the most eminent disciples of Rabbi Akiva, and attributed by many Orthodox Jews with the authorship of the Zohar, the chief work of Kabbalah. In addition, important legal homilies called ""Sifre"" and ""Mekhilta"" are attributed to"
"in the Mishnah, Rabbi Akiva, a Judean Tanna of the latter part of the 1st century and the beginning of the 2nd century, said the Shema prayer as he was combed to death by agents of Ancient Rome. Evoking this memorable incident, a writer for ""Haaretz"" metaphorically described political corruption in contemporary Israel as ""an iron comb of torture"". Combing continued to be used as a means of torture during the persecution of early Christians in the Roman Empire. The ""Acts of St. Blaise"", a Greek text describing the 3rd century Armenian bishop Saint Blaise, recount how he was captured"
"my uncle's couch). Avraham Shlonsky Avraham Shlonsky (March 6, 1900 – May 18, 1973; ; ) was a significant and dynamic Israeli poet and editor born in the Russian Empire. He was influential in the development of modern Hebrew and its literature in Israel through his many acclaimed translations of literary classics, particularly from Russian, as well as his own original Hebrew children's classics. Known for his humor, Shlonsky earned the nickname ""Lashonsky"" from the wisecrackers of his generation (""lashon"" means ""tongue"", i.e., ""language"") for his unusually clever and astute innovations in the newly evolving Hebrew language. Avraham Shlonsky was"
"soaps, rubber stamps, etc., most of which were decorated with motifs from graphic arts. In the Jewish settlements artists worked at gold smithing, silver smithing, and embroidery, producing their works in small crafts workshops. A portion of these works were intended to be amulets. One of the best known of these artists, Moshe Ben Yitzhak Mizrachi of Jerusalem made Shiviti (or Shivisi, in the Ashkenazic pronunciation, meditative plaques used in some Jewish communities for contemplation over God's name) on glass and amulets on parchments, with motifs such as the Sacrifice of Isaac, the Book of Esther, and views of the"
"and payot. Yisroel Meir Gabbai Yisroel Meir Gabbai is a Breslover Hasid who travels the world to locate, repair and maintain Jewish cemeteries and ""kevarim"" (gravesites) of Torah notables. He is the founder of Agudas Ohalei Tzadikim. Gabbai's father was a native of Morocco and his mother a descendant of German Jews; they married in France, where Gabbai was born. He along with his family later moved to Israel. In his youth, Gabbai attended Yeshivas Lucerne under Rav Yitzchok Dov Koppelman and went on to study in the Ponevezh Yeshiva in Bnei Brak and the Breslov Yeshiva in Jerusalem. In"
"today it is the leading variety in Israel, and is a very important article in international trade. Although the graft of Greek citron on Balady rootstock was a great idea from practical and Halachic views, it induced suspicion from customers who wondered why the Israeli citron was suddenly so beautiful with an erect pitam. Suspicion arose in Israel and in the diaspora, and many rumors spread. The late Grand Rabbi of Munkatch, Chaim Elazar Spira, was aware of the change. He speculated that it was the same problem continuously claimed against the Greek in their homeland Greece, namely to be"
"Izrael Abraham Staffel Izrael Abraham Staffel (1814–1884) was a Polish inventor, watchmaker, mechanic, designer of calculating machines. Staffel was born in 1814 in Warsaw to an impoverished Jewish family. He received an elementary education in a Jewish school and was then sent to a watchmaker to continue his education. He taught himself Polish in order that he could read technical educational books. Then in 1833 at the age of 19 he received a concession to open a watchmakers shop in Warsaw. He took great interest in mechanical calculating machines. In 1845, at an industrial exhibition in Warsaw, he exhibited for"
"vessels found at excavations of Iron Age IIA sites in the Negev Highlands represent the largest and most dominant ceramic assemblage of simple-shaped vessels discovered in Israel. Negevite pottery Negevite pottery is the name given to a handmade ware found in Iron Age sites of the Negev desert, southern Jordan, and the Shfela of Israel. It was produced from coarse clay containing straw and other organic materials. It was discovered by C. Leonard Woolley and T.E. Lawrence in the northeastern Sinai, found again by Nelson Glueck in Tell el-Kheleifeh, and at last identified by Yohanan Aharoni as the wares manufactured"
"pottery so as to meet their needs. The hallmark of this early Israelite style is the pithoi. They are scattered over these sites. Many of the storage jars had The “Collared Rim”, which were most popular to the central part of Israel, although they have since also been found to also have been manufactured in areas outside of the Israelite settlement area. During the period of the United Monarchy, Israelite pottery improved. Finishing techniques used a remarkable amount of red slip, applied by hand and smoothed with an irregular burnish. At the division of the kingdom, however, pottery styles broke"
"CE. In Jewish tradition, Saadiah (d. 942), Ibn Ezra (d. circa 1164), Maimonides (1135–1204) and Obadiah ben Abraham (1465–1515) identified the ""ezov"" mentioned in the Hebrew Bible (Hebrew: איזוב, Samaritan Hebrew: ࠀࠉࠆࠅࠁ) with the Arabic word ""za'atar"". Ezov/za'atar is particularly associated with ritual purity ceremonies, such as preparing the ashes of the red heifer (Numbers 19:6) and handling bodily contaminations (Leviticus 14:4, 6, 51–52; Numbers 20:18). The Children of Israel are also said to have used a clump of ezov/za'atar stalks to daub the blood of the Paschal sacrifice on the doorposts of their houses before leaving bondage in Egypt"
"Shimon Lavi Shimon Lavi (, also Shimon ibn Lavi, , anglicized as Simeon Labi, 1486–1585) was a Sephardi Hakham, kabbalist, physician, astronomer, and poet. He is credited with the founding of religious institutions and the revival of Torah study in Tripoli, Libya, in the mid-sixteenth century, where he served as spiritual leader and ""dayan"" (rabbinical court judge) for more than three decades. He authored a commentary on the Zohar titled ""Ketem Paz"" and the ""piyyut"", """"Bar Yochai"""", a kabbalistic hymn which became widely popular in the Jewish world. Libyan Jews consider him their greatest scholar. As a child, Lavi was"
"in the Negev. For the desert-based Kibbutz Hatzerim looking to expand its activities beyond agriculture, Simcha Blass's invention opened up a world of possibilities. Blass and his son Yeshayahu and Kibbutz Hatzerim signed a contract (on August 10, 1965) establishing Netafim Irrigation Company (80% Kibbutz Hatzerim and 20% Blass). Production began in 1966. With Blass's original narrow spaghetti tube model and later models as the starting point, Netafim engineers working with Blass, developed the online dripper—indeed allowing the desert to bloom. Simcha Blass Simcha Blass (November 27, 1897 – July 18, 1982; ) was a Polish-Israeli engineer and inventor who"