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The world's oldest known medieval Judaica relic is now its most valuable, too

JL;DR SUMMARY The Toledo Museum of Art's acquisition of a 12th-century Afghan Kiddush cup, valued at $4 million, marks a significant event in the Judaica world, involving the most valuable ceremonial Judaica object ever sold. A way out west there was a fella, fella I want to tell you about, fella by the name of Jeff Lebowski. At least, that was the handle his lovin' parents gave him, but he never had much use for it himself. This Lebowski, he called himself the Dude. Now, Dude, that's a name no one would self-apply where I come from. But then, there was a lot about the Dude that didn't make a whole lot of sense to me. And a lot about where he lived, likewise. But then again, maybe that's why I found the place s'durned innarestin'.

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Tags

Jewish HistoryHebrewSilk RoadJudaicaArabicCultural ExchangeKiddush CupMedievalKhorasanAfghan Geniza

Places mentioned

Toledo, Ohio, United States
"And, just last week, the Toledo Museum of Art, in Ohio, continued this Judaica revival of sorts by acquiring a 12th-century Afghan kiddush cup for a cool $4 million, a record for a ceremonial object of Judaica."
Boston, Massachusetts, United States
"In 2023, Bostons Museum of Fine Arts opened a permanent Judaica gallery, the countrys second at a general read: non-Jewish institution."
Houston, Texas, United States
"A year later, Houstons MFA followed suit."
Afghanistan
"The cup would make an excellent narrative device, therefore, calling attention to the largely forgotten medieval Jewish community of eastern Khorasan, modern-day Afghanistan; to the many fruitful exchanges between Jews and Muslims in the region; and to the crucial medieval trade route that sliced through central Asia, the Silk Road."
London, United Kingdom
"Noah is a Forward intern who recently completed a masters in journalism at City St Georges, University of London and previously worked as an Education Associate at Harvard Hillel, where he organized educational trips; taught seminars to undergraduates on a range of Jewish subjects; oversaw Hillels social media; and ran its social justice and equity programming."

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Cairo Item ID 67327
Cairo Source ID 35
Retrieved 2025-11-19 05:30:45 UTC
Curated 2025-11-19 08:31:50 UTC