Ring with Crescent and Star from the Erfurt Treasure
Erfurt, Germany, late 13th century or early 14th century
Original on display at the Old Synagogue in Erfurt
Must Know
Many Jews in Ashkenaz were prosperous. If faced with a calamity and forced to flee their homes, they often left behind many of their possessions – which in numerous instances were hidden in the hope of returning and recovering them in the future. That was the case with the Colchester Hoard and the Erfurt Treasure.
The renovation of a shop in the town of Colchester, england, led to the discovery of a cache of thousands of silver coins from the 13th century. In that period, the homes in the area were owned by wealthy Jews, who were expelled along with all the Jews of england in 1290.
This ring belongs to a remarkable and priceless treasure trove that was hidden by a Jewish merchant in the walls of his home in the city of Erfurt, Germany. After being accused of causing bubonic plague (the Black Death pandemic), the majority of the Jewish community in Erfurt were murdered in riots that broke out there in March 1349.
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