Grigorescu, Felicia: Forme de artă în cimitire evreieşti din nord-vestul Romaniei (Satu Mare, 2013)
Glosar de termeni
The fig is represented on the funeral monument more frequently through its beautiful leaf but also through the round, slightly pitched fruit, which cannot be easily identified153. The lily. This phytomorphic motif, though it apparently belongs to the studied area, is, however, a perpetuated element in the Judaic art since Antiquity. Due to the lack of botanical knowledge, it was said about the lily that several other species of plants were included to it which were not correctly identified and which probably did not have a well-defined nomination"4. The lily, always filled with positive connotations, is a Biblical symbol; from the references made to it we will refer to the one connected to the powerful symbol of the pillars of Jachin and Boaz, pillars whose column heads ...upon the top of the pillars were of lily work in the porch 155. The fact that it is a very frequent motif especially in the funeral art is due to its shape, which is simple to represent, both in a naturalistic manner and stylized when represented with three petals, the lateral in two broken lines, sometimes having two dots represented between the petals, which should be the equivalent of stamina156 157. The lily often appears almost diminutive in the completion of other decorative elements, as for example the border of the epitaph, when it appears as a corner element, still found on old sandstone gravestones. The motif of the rose. This decorative motif is frequently used in the decoration of gravestones of the ones who died young. It appears incised, singular or in a bunch of three roses, but most frequently it appears on decorative compositions: in rich coronals with flowers and leaves executed as low relief on stones, filling or overflowing from the numerous decorative vessels, either represented as high relief on the gravestone, or tridimensional next to them, or attached to the graves’ surroundings. The rose is the most frequent phytomorphic element in the Jewish cemeteries in the first half of the 20th century. The open flower with the round and concentric multitude of petals is represented naturalistically, as well as the leaves that, besides the central nervure, have the ramifications of their other nervures represented, too (Pic. 75). The ivy. With fewer religious connotations than the vine, the ivy is, however, included among the most well-known plants that appear in the funeral Jewish ornamentation. It is supposed that it might have been taken from the Hellenistic art"7. It appears represented naturalistically as a branch with leaves alternating on the spindle, very frequently in the cemetery from Oradea, as unique ornamentation, or framing other decorative elements (Pic. 76). It can appear as a simplified form with three or five lobes, or even more stylized, with a dynamic arrow-shape. Woven circlets. Numerous in the biblical text, the circlets appear also in the synagogue near the shrine, but most frequently they appear in the cemeteries: ...in the 153 Cynthia Crewe, Plant motifs..., p. 34 134 Ibidem, p. 18 155 The Bible, I Kings 7: 19 136 Cynthia Crewe, Plant motifs..., p. 18 157 Ibidem, p. 27 138
