Hanukkah lamp

This Hanukkah lamp from the Bene Israel, the largest of the three Jewish communities in India, was lit in the synagogue during the evening service. Later, after the lighting in the home, the family would celebrate by eating sweet dishes. Both the domestic Hanukkah lamps and those used in the synagogue had a back wall and a shelf into which arms with glass cups were fitted. The back wall assumed a variety of forms: Stars of David, hearts, birds' heads, triangles, polygons, or wavy outlines.