Pre-Holocaust Menorah Brings Light to French Consulate Hanukah Event in NYC

A pre-Holocaust Hanukah menorah that was carefully hidden away in World War II while Nazis hunted Jews in then-Czechoslovakia appeared Monday evening at a Jewish holiday celebration at the French Consulate in New York.

More than 150 people attended the invitation-only celebration organized by Chabad-Lubavitch emissary Rebetzin Ester Cohen, including Israeli Consul General Ofir Akunis and French Consul General Cedric Fouriscot.

The 19th century menorah, which once adorned the lectern of a synagogue in Czechoslovakia burned down by the Nazis during Kristallnacht (Nov. 9, 1938), belongs to an extensive Judaica collection owned by Thomas and Sonia Gelb.

“Thanks to local residents, this candelabra along with the Sefer Torahs were rescued and removed from the synagogue before its devastating destruction,” according to a description of the piece.

“These saved items were hidden in a local church and safeguarded by the local priest. After WWII the saved contents of the shul were returned to the Jewish community.”

“The menorah is a very special piece in my collection,” Gelb said, adding the Jewish People “will forever remain and survive, and our traditions and customs will be passed on to our descendants, down to the future generations.”