The finely woven "curtain" or "veil" that separated the "holy place" in the Sanctuary from the Holy of Holies, as commanded in Exodus (26:31-33): "You shall make a curtain [parokhet] of blue, purple, and scarlet yarns and fine twisted linen; with cherubim it shall be designed, the work of a skilled craftsman ... and it shall serve as a partition between the holy place and the Holy of Holies." A similar curtain was made for Solomon's Temple (II Chr. 3:14), two giant figures of a Cherub guarding the Ark of the Covenant within the Holy of Holies or "Sanctuary" (I Kings 6:23ff.). The curtain covered the cherubim and, when worshipers thronged to the Temple on Pilgrim Festivals, the curtain was rolled aside so that they might see the cherubim (Yoma 54a).
The synagogue Ark which now houses the Scrolls of the Law is considered analogous to the Holy of Holies in the Sanctuary. It is enclosed with doors, sometimes ornamented, as a sign of respect and for protection. In Ashkenazi and many Oriental congregations, an embroidered curtain is hung in front of the Ark doors; this curtain is also styled a parokhet, as in the Temple.
While the Synagogue as an institution in Jewish religious life is often said to have "replaced" the Temple, and was indeed termed a mikdash me'at (a Sanctuary in miniature; cf. Ezek. 11:16), no halakhic or theological justification was proposed to give the synagogue either the appearance of the Temple or its pattern of service. Nevertheless, from the earliest recorded dates of synagogue art and procedure, efforts were made to remind the worshiper of the glory and sanctity which the Temple had possessed. The curtain used to divide the Sanctuary from the contents of the Ark remains, in appearance, ornamentation, and function, a link between synagogue and Temple.
In both Ashkenazi and Sephardi traditions, the Ark's curtain was made of rich material such as velvet, brocade, or Italian silk decorated with needlework and embroidery. As in the Temple, the curtain is made by women. The symbolic representations which it incorporates are either of a general or a special type. The former include dedicatory inscriptions (since the curtain may be a private gift to the synagogue), floral and fruit motifs, or a Magen David. The latter reflect the particular significance of the curtain as a gateway to the sacred space in which the Torah scrolls rest. They include the Keter ("crown") symbolizing the Torah's majesty as the word of God, flanked by "lions of Judah" which are also symbolic of kingship. Fluted and other architectural elements represent the entrance to the Temple. This concept of the "sacred portal" is a universal theme of religious art and frequently appears on ancient Jewish coins. Winged lions and other mythological beasts symbolize the otherworldly spiritual realm and its angelic hosts which minister to God, as did the cherubim in the original parokhet.
In place of the normal colored hanging, a white satin curtain is used on Rosh Ha-Shanah, the Day of Atonement, Hoshana Rabbah, and Shemini Atseret. Ashkenazim remove the curtain from the Ark on Tishah Be-Av as a sign of grief over the Temple's destruction; Oriental Jewish practice is for a black curtain to be hung on that fast day. There is no parokhet fronting the Ark in Western Sephardi congregations, the curtain being hung instead within and to the rear of the doors of the Ark.
