KKL-JNF archive shares rare photos of Chanukah celebrations in Israel
Black-and-white images provide a glimpse into the holiday traditions of Jewish communities in the early 20th century.
A girl in Jerusalem, representing the young generation of Jewish life in Eretz Israel, lights a Chanukah menorah in 1947 as a symbol of the revival of light. Credit: KKL-JNF Photo Archive.
The Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael-Jewish National Fund (KKL-JNF) Archive is sharing a collection of rare historical photographs this holiday season showcasing Chanukah celebrations across Israel.
Lighting the Chanukah candles in Jerusalem, 1950. Credit: KKL-JNF Photo Archive.
As part of its commitment to preserving history, the archive releases and offers black-and-white images to provide a glimpse into the traditions of Jewish communities throughout the Land of Israel in the early and mid-20th century.
“Since its founding, KKL-JNF has been dedicated to documenting the landscapes, people and significant moments in the history of the Land of Israel,” states Efrat Sinai, director of archives.
“We are honored to share these remarkable photographs, preserved in our archives, with the public, allowing them to connect with an important part of our collective heritage,” she adds.
A representative in Jerusalem of the young generation lights Chanukah candles with a soldier from the Jewish Brigade, whose members had just liberated Europe at the end of World War II, 1945. Credit: KKL-JNF Photo Archive.Lighting of a torch brought from Modi’in in a race commemorating the Maccabees on the roof of KKL-JNF’s main office in the National Institutions building in Jerusalem, 1950. From the early 1930s to the early 1950s, the building housed the headquarters of Jewish and Israeli leadership. Credit: KKL-JNF Photo Archive.Chanukah candles lit for the first time in Israel by children of the Jewish Yemenite community of Luzim. The moshav, established on Mount Eitan in 1950, later became part of Moshav Even Sapir. Credit: KKL-JNF Photo Archive.The Yemenite community celebrates the lighting of candles with a large handmade Chanukah menorah in Moshav Eshtaol in central Israel, 1954. Credit: KKL-JNF Photo Archive.Kindergarten children wearing paper candle crowns light the Chanukah menorah on Mount Carmel in Haifa and contribute to the building of Israel through the KKL-JNF blue box campaign, 1955. Credit: KKL-JNF Photo Archive.Preschool children donate to the KKL-JNF during Chanukah candle-lighting in Jerusalem, 1957. Credit: Fritz Schlesinger, KKL-JNF Archive.Chanukah torch-lighting ceremony 5723 in Jerusalem, 1962. Credit: David Hirschfeld, KKL-JNF Archive.Lighting the menorah during Chanukah in Jerusalem, 1967. Credit: Martha Haloig, KKL-JNF Photo Archive.
