Craft in Sephardi Izmir was often bound to religious life and the home. The most distinctive tradition is that of the synagogue textiles, made and cared for across generations.
Synagogue textiles
The synagogues of Izmir hold and once held a rich body of ritual textiles: covers and mantles for the Torah scrolls, curtains for the Ehal, and cloths used in prayer and on festivals. These pieces carried embroidery, dedications and the marks of the families who gave them, and they form part of the community’s movable heritage alongside its books and buildings. Traditional synagogue textiles were one of the themes documented and published by the recent İzmir Jewish Heritage Project.
Home and festive craft
Beyond the synagogue, craft belonged to the rhythm of the household and the festival calendar: embroidered and woven pieces for the home, and objects made for life-cycle events. Read alongside Gastronomy and Sephardic Culture, these traditions show how much of Sephardi memory was carried through everyday making.
