no. 1630. JHWISH CHREMONIALS—ADLER AND CASANOWICZ. 729 
125. Manuscriet or THE Boox or Esrurr.—Written on leather. 
Height, 7 inches. (Cat. No. 158465, U.S.N.M.) 
IV. OBJECTS USED ON SPECIAL OCCASIONS AND INCIDENTS OF LIFE. 
126. SILVER SET OF INSTRUMENTS USED AT THE RITE OF CIRCUMCI- 
ston.—Consisting of knives, scissors, shields, platters, boxes for pow- 
ders, ete. 
The rite of circumcision (milah) is practiced in pursuance of 
Genesis xvul, 10-12: “ This is My covenant, which ye shall keep, be- 
tween me and you and thy seed after thee; every male among you 
shall be circumcised. And ye shall be circumcised in the flesh of your 
foreskin; and it shall be a token of a covenant betwixt me and you. 
And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you, every 
male throughout your generation.” Circumcision is accordingly per- 
formed on the eighth day after the child’s birth. But in case of sick 
or weak children it 1s postponed until they are strong enough to 
undergo the operation. The performance of the rite of circumcision 
is accompanied by the recital of prayers and benedictions and is com- 
bined with the naming of the child.¢ 
Circumcision was common in Kgypt as early as the fourth dynasty. 
At the present day it prevails among the Kafhrs and some negro 
tribes of Africa, in parts of Australia, in many of the South Sea 
Islands, and it is said to be practiced by the Abyssinian Christians 
as a national custom. Early Spanish travelers found it to be prevalent 
in the West Indies, Mexico, and among tribes in South America. It 
is a common rite among Mohammedans everywhere. (Cat. No. 3631, 
U.S.N.M.) 
Lent by Hadji Ephraim Benguiat. 
127. SILVER CUP AND KNIFE USED AT CIRCUMCISION. (Plate LX X XI, 
figs. 1-3, Cat. No. 154487, U.S.N.M.) 
128. LirurGy OF THE RITES OF CIRCUMCISION AND REDEMPTION OF 
THE. FIRSTBORN.—Manuscript, written on parchment. Dated, 1840. 
The redemption of the firstborn (pidyon ha-ben) is observed in com- 
phance with Exodus xii, 2, 12-15, compare Numbers xviii, 15, ac- 
cording to which the firstborn was considered as particularly belong- 
ing to God because when the Lord slew the firstborn in the land of 
Egypt He spared the firstborn of the Israelites. The rite takes place 
on the thirty-first day after the child’s birth, and consists, in aceord- 
ance with Numbers xviii, 16, in the parents giving a sum to the value 
of 5 shekels (about $2.50) to a priest, i. e.,a descendant of Aaron. If 
either of the parents belongs to the family of Aaron, or to the tribe 
of Levi, the child need not be redeemed. The law apples only to 
the firstborn of the mother, but not of the father. The ceremony is 
4Compare Luke i, 59; ii, 21. 
’ Compare Herodotus ii, 36, 37, 104; Wilkinson, Ancient Hgypt, ch. xv. 
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