Julia Let wrote to Spertus Museum in 1987 to donate two amulets, one of which is shown as part of Slippages. Through this amulet, which was made for her while she was in a German labor camp in 1945, she wanted to tell the story of Klari Braun, the woman who made the amulets in trade for more bread for her pregnant cousin. As Julia put it, “I wanted to tell her story because she deserves to be remembered. There were not too many people in the concentration camps who gave up their bread and sacrificed life for somebody else.”
In contrast to Julia Let’s intensely personal story of the amulet, hardly anything is known about the elaborate knife. The knife came to Spertus Museum in 1968 and bears the inscription “Brit Milah,” suggesting that it is related to the ritual practice of circumcision, though it is much too large and dull to have ever been used for the actual practice. Having an ostentatious fake made for the purpose of reminding one of the circumcision ceremony is an unusual practice and leads to many questions about the artist’s intent and the owner’s desires.
The Community Ring has a similarly complicated history. Though these architecturally styled rings are said to have been used as Jewish betrothal rings based on medieval designs, there is no proof that they were used in this context at all. Ironically, the majority of the rings found in this medieval style seem to have been made within the past hundred years, suggesting that it is in fact the myth about their history that is generating their invention. This particular ring appears to have been made during the twentieth century and is marked with the words mazal tov or congratulations, and kallah and chatan, or bride and groom. These inscriptions are commonly found on reproductions of rings and seem to be an attempt to corroborate the false myth of community rings being used in the Jewish betrothal ceremonies.
Though these three small, intimate objects seem to represent similar personal sentiments as the Wedding Gown and Opera Glasses, the histories of the Amulet, the Circumcision Knife, and the Community Ring interact in ways that make us question our own understanding of ritual and knowledge.
