The World of Jewish Scribal Arts
A Sofer, (Sopher or Sofer SeTaM) is a Jewish scribe; he can transcribe a number of things- the Torah Scrolls, Mezuzot, Tefillin, and other religious documents like Megillot, Nevi’im, and Gittin. He functions as a copyist, but this Judaistic role means more than that, it is deeply connected to Irrael’s religion. Scribes are also calligraphers who write contracts for marriage as well as other decorative and artistic writings of religious documents; this may not require scribal qualifications and execution may have no need for strict rules on lettering and parchment usage.
The Torah Scroll is deemed the holiest book within Judaism and must follow the strictest standards for production. It is used in rituals of Torah reading for Jewish services and is placed at the holiesy section of a synagogue. Non-ritual copies may be produced in printed book form, known as Chumash.
The Mezuzot is on a parchment, often decoratively encased. It has inscriptions of Hebrew verses from the Torah; Deuteronomy 6:4-9 and Deuteronomy 11:13-21. The verses are a Jewish Prayer (Shema Yisrael). The Shema may also be affixed to doorframes of Jewish houses, known as a Mezuzah in fulfillment of the mitzvah or biblical commandment that instructs the people to inscribe the Shema on the doorposts of their houses.
The Tefillin is also called phylacteries and are deemed to guard and protect the wearer. These are small black leather boxes which contain parchment scrolls of the verses from Torah. Jews wear them during weekday morning prayers. Hand-tefillin, called ‘shel yad’, is worn in the upper arm. It is strapped around it, as well as the around hands and fingers. Head-tefillin, or shel rosh, is worn above the forehead. The tefillin was commanded in the Bible to be worn as a sign for remembrance of how God rescued Israel out of Egyptian bondage.
The Five Megillot are scrolls that comprise a major part of the Hebrew Bible, Tanakh. These are the books of Ruth, Lamentations, Esther, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. These are short books of the Bible.
A sofer is given great honor among the Jewish communers. Ezra in the Bible was a known sofer. This vocation is rarely accompanied by sufficient compensation, hence, most of the sofrim lived in poverty.
