By :
Mark Etinger
A legal document in the Jewish faith, the Ketubah is one of the oldest historical symbols of mutual respect from men towards women. When most cultures were treating females as lesser beings, the Jewish community was taking steps to protect their rights. And while the Ketubahs historical significance in the relationship between husband-and-wife is truly significant, it is perhaps less recognized for its heavy role in Judaica art.For those who are unaware, a Ketubah is a Jewish marriage contract. Historically, Ketubahs were created as a means for protecting the rights and property of the wife during the marriage. Similar in some ways to a modern day prenuptial agreement, the Ketubah is an example of the Jewish people's historical reverence and care for women.The literal intention of the Ketubah is a means of obligating a new husband to fulfill his responsibilities as a provider for his wife, as well as protecting the women in the event of divorce or her spouses untimely death. Ketubahs not only dictate that a husband must guarantee his wife food, clothing and shelter, but also mental and emotional support when necessary. One of the oldest known marriage contracts in the recorded history of man, Rabbis created the Ketubah to replace the "mohar," which is better known as a "bride-price." At the time, most young Jewish men preparing for marriage had yet to accumulate the necessary wealth to produce enough for a mohar, so the Rabbis created the Ketubah. The Ketubah is similar to the modern day pre-nup, in that it was meant to deter married couples from divorce, because it made the husband legally and financially responsible for his wife, or ex-wife. In the words of David Davidovitch, author of The Ketuba: Jewish Marriage Contracts Through The Ages, the Ketubah is "an important document both historically and legally speaking, with a major significance as an intimate family document that has a considerable folklorist charm of its own."While the Ketubah is often recognized as a symbol of the Jewish people's historical respect and concern for female members of their culture, it has also become a branch of its own in the world of Jewish art. Davidovitch also writes that like "the Hanukkah menorah, the cemetery tombstone and the Hadass or spice-container for the Havdala ceremony on Saturday night, so here as well many artists emerged in the branch of the Ketuba and left us with an ample range of magnificent documents, miniatures and calligraphic works of art." The true beauty of these historic documents, according to Davidovitch, is not just their obvious visual impressiveness. The true beauty is that, since they are historic pieces of art, they also serve as pristine documents into an era of history from which little documentation still exists.
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