(or Ark of the Law). The enclosed structure, freestanding or built into the wall of the Synagogue, which houses the Scrolls of the Law. In Hebrew, it is known as the aron ha-kodesh ("holy Ark") or hékhal ("sanctuary"); in the days of the Mishnah it was called simply the tevah ("chest"; Ta'an 2:1). Jewish law requires that great honor be paid to the scrolls, on account of their special holiness, by keeping them in a special place which must be beautiful and respected (YD 282). The Ark itself then becomes the next holiest component of the synagogue and, while one may sell the pews to purchase an Ark, one may not sell an Ark even to build a synagogue (Meg. 26a). There is literary and archeological evidence that, in synagogues of the early talmudic period, the Ark was portable; sometimes it was wheeled into the synagogue and placed in a specially designed niche (as at Dura Europos). This feature, as well as the name "Ark" (aron), suggests the assignment of a role to the Torah scrolls in the synagogue analogous to that of the two Tablets of the Covenant in the desert Sanctuary and in Solomon's Temple, which were kept in a portable Ark of the Covenant (Ex. 25:10-16). Indeed, the Bible relates that the original Torah scroll, when completed by Moses, was kept next to or within the Ark in which the stone tablets bearing the Ten Commandments were contained (Deut. 31:26; see Rashi ad hoc). That this association continued down the ages may be seen from the popular custom of placing a symbolic representation of the Ten Commandments on two tablets above the Ark; an early example can be found in the Sephardi (Portuguese) synagogue of Amsterdam (1675).
Originally, the Torah scrolls may have been placed in a horizontal position within the Ark. From the Middle Ages, however, the dominant practice was to stand them upright, bejeweled and wrapped in ornate mantles (see Torah Ornaments). To this day, Eastern Sephardim enclose their scrolls in a case (tik) which is always kept upright. The Ark itself usually has an embroidered curtain (Parokhet) in front or within and an Eternal Light (ner tamid) burning continuously in front or nearby. Larger Sephardi synagogues contained multiple Arks---usually two or three.
Once the Ark was built into the wall of the synagogue and no longer served merely as a "chest" or repository for the scrolls, it began to take on the character of a "sacred portal" giving access to the sanctuary of the Torah. From the 16th century onward, as the focal point of the synagogue, the Ark was given an elaborate, artistic form and its ornamentation was in line with the dominant architectural style of the period. Thus, there is a Gothic-style Ark (1505) from Modena (Museé Cluny, Paris), a Renaissance-style Ark (1550) from Urbino (Jewish Museum, New York), and an elaborately carved and gilded Ark of the Vittorio Veneto Synagogue (1701) in the Israel Museum, Jerusalem, which has been described as "resembling the portal of a classical Greek temple, decorated in baroque style with the addition of some Jewish iconography."
Other notable baroque-style Arks can be seen in the Venetian Ghetto, while Oriental-style 19th-century Arks (both European and American) were often topped by domed representations of the Jerusalem Temple. A splendid example of iconography can be found on the delicately carved wooden doors of an. 18th-century Polish synagogue Ark depicting birds, animals, and floral designs, with the Hebrew inscription (Avot 5:20): "Bold as a leopard, light as an eagle, swift as a deer, strong as a lion" (Sir Isaac and Lady Wolfson Museum, Hechal Shlomo, Jerusalem). The Tablets of the Law, supported by a lion on either side, have become a standard feature of Ark design in many contemporary synagogues.
While the space between the Ark and the Bimah (reader's platform) in the center of the synagogue or next to the opposite wall presented a challenge to synagogue architects from medieval times, those who designed Reform synagogues from the mid-19th century onwards invariably combined the two features. The reader now stood on a dais in front of the Ark, which thereby remained the focus of attention throughout the entire service.
The Ark is placed on the "eastern" wall of the synagogue, which is oriented towards Jerusalem, so that worshipers will face the Torah and the Temple area in prayer (I Kings 8:48). Synagogues in Jerusalem itself face the Temple Mount (see Mizraḥ).
Whenever a Torah scroll is taken out for the Reading of the Law, the Ark becomes the focus of a dramatic ceremony. Adorned with silver crown, breastplate, and finials, the scroll is carried in a procession to the reading desk, amid song and praise, as the congregation stands in respect. During the reading of special prayers, when the Ark doors are opened (see Petiḥah), worshipers also rise as a mark of respect and stand while the Ark remains open.
