THE EUROPEAN CHANUKAH MENORAH

The feast of Chanukah dates back to the times of Antioch IV Epifane, when the Jewish people were first persecuted for religious reasons.
All the treasures of the Temple of Jerusalem were stolen, the altar was violated. To eliminate all traces of Hebrew religion Antioch ordered the desacration of the Sanctuary and turned it into a temple for pagan rites.
One day, in 165 b.C., a jew called Mattatia rebelled against the Greek soldiers and, with the help of his five sons, attacked the enemy troops. Miraculously he won the battle and managed to destroy the idols. The Temple was purified. On the eve of the reconsacration of the Temple only a little jar of oil was found. It was barely enough to light the Menorah of the temple for the following day.
It was then that another miracle occurred: that small quantity of oil burnt for eight days, the time necessary to prepare some new purified oil.
The following year the feast of Chanukah was proclaimed, it was to last eight days, to commemorate forever this religious victory.
Today as everybody’s right to practice his religion without restrictions is respected, the Jews throughout the world come together in spirit and light the Chanukah Menorah to state once again the message of religious freedom.

Differently from all traditional Menorahs, the European Menorah is inspired by the Star of David and follows precise geometric proportions (the width of each arm is equal to the space between them) and rests on 17 feet.
In the hebrew universe, that is almost unchangeable, its pure lines and its unmistakable structure has made it, in only a few years, an icon, published on books and magazines both in the USA and in Europe.

In occasion of the feast of Chanukah of the year 2001 Enrico Segré produced, for the first time, some models of the European Chanukah Menorah.