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Marriages are Made in Heaven: Marriage and the Individual in the Roman Jewish Ghetto*

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 November 2018

Kenneth R. Stow
Kenneth R. Stow*
Affiliation:
University of Haifa
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Extract

The Woman—Dressed in the common mode of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries — stands with her right, or sometimes left, hand extended forward, the second finger raised and stretched forth. The man, dressed similarly, confronts her, ring in hand, to place on her outstretched finger. There are others in attendance, principally a figure of dignity close to the pair and perhaps as many as ten or more spectators. The description is that of a wedding, in fact, a Jewish one. The action takes place exclusively between the bride and the groom, although in one version of this picture (there are many), the dignified third figure raises a cup in hand; in others, he is reciting words of blessing.

Type
Studies
Information
Renaissance Quarterly , Volume 48 , Issue 3 , Autumn 1995 , pp. 445 - 491
Copyright
Copyright © Renaissance Society of America 1995

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