An oil lamp which was hung in the Yechidus-Room of Rabbi Shmuel Schneerson, the Rebbe Maharash of Lubavitch.

Cast iron. The lamp consists of an oil pan with four fonts, and a suspension hook.

Letter of authenticity enclosed (handwritten note, in English), signed in Hebrew by his great granddaughter, Rebbetzin Chana Gurary (1899-1991), eldest daughter of Rebbe Rayatz: "I hereby gift... the iron hanging lamp used by the Rebbe Maharash in his Yechidus room. After my great-grandfather the Maharash passed away that room was used for other purposes as well. I myself packed this up when we were leaving Lubavitch. My grandfather the Rashab told me to keep it as a memory of Lubavitch". Dated – February 25, 1990.

The escape from Lubavitch

For one hundred and two years (1813-1915), the center of Chassidut Chabad was located in the town of Lubavitch, Belarus. In autumn 1915, during WWI, the German forces approached the city of Smolensk, near Lubavitch, forcing Rebbe Rashab to flee the town, which was home to his ancestors since the Mitteler Rebbe settled there in late 1813. After a journey lasting several days, the Rebbe Rashab, together with his family and his entourage, settled in the town of Rostov-on-Don, in south-western Russia.

The Rashab's son, Rebbe Rayatz, describes at length in his diary, the deliberations that preceded the decision to leave Lubavitch, the Rashab's instruction to pack up the possessions of "Beis Rebbe", the difficult journey with a great amount of baggage, and eventually, the arrival to Rostov:

"Rumor has it that we are moving, to where and when - nobody knows, not even us. Just that my father [the Rashab] has said that we need to make the necessary preparations to travel and pack up what needs taking …The station master did a lot for us, he instructed to receive all our baggage, which amounted to 97 poods [a Russian unit of weight; over 1500 kg in total], and he himself stood there when it was loaded onto the wagons that would travel with us. He told the baggage guard to keep a careful watch on the baggage, that it arrives safely… The cost of the journey is high… we're traveling in five, seven, nine wagons, to the residence where we have been allocated rooms… the Jewish community of Rostov is in great excitement about our arrival" (MiBeit HaGenazim, pp. 26-36).

Based on the enclosed letter of authenticity, upon fleeing Lubavitch, the Rebbe Rashab instructed his eldest granddaughter Rebbetzin Chana Gurary to pack up the belongings of his father, the Rebbe Maharash, and at that time, he gave her this lamp as a keepsake.

Maximum height (with the suspension hook): 44 cm. Maximum basin diameter: 14 cm. Good condition. Minor blemishes.

Large Seder plate of Rebbe Shmuel Schneerson, the Rebbe Maharash of Lubavitch.

Large, oval silver-plated Seder plate, with engraved foliate and geometric designs. Openwork rim. With two stylized foliate handles. Made by Elkington & Co., Birmingham, 1873.

Letter of authenticity enclosed (handwritten note, in English), signed in Hebrew by Rebbetzin Chana Gurary (1899-1991), eldest daughter of Rebbe Rayatz: "I hereby gift... the Seder tray of my great-grandfather the Maharash. He bought it during one of his trips abroad". Dated – 10th December 1989.

Chabad Rebbes and the Silver Seder Plate

Chabad Rebbes used to place their Matzot on a silver plate, while other members of their family placed theirs on a cloth: "In the house of the Rebbe, Matzot are arranged on a cloth, rather than a plate, except for the Rebbe, who arranges the Matzot on a silver plate" ("Haggadah Shel Pesach Im Likutei Taamim Uminhagim", p. 6; Hebrew).

Several days before Pesach 1950 (after the passing of his father-in-law the Rebbe Rayatz, and before his appointment as Rebbe), the Lubavitcher Rebbe had a young Chassid buy him a large Kiddush cup and a silver plate for the Seder night.

Rebbe Maharash's Travels

Rebbe Maharash's involvement in communal work already began during the lifetime of his father, the Tzemach Tzedek. He would regularly travel to Kyiv and St. Petersburg to lobby on behalf of Russian Jewry, in an effort to annul various decrees imposed on them. He made his first trip abroad in 1858, visiting Italy and Germany and meeting with communal leaders and activists; he made similar trips during the years 1859 and 1862. Even after the passing of his father the Tzemach Tzedek, and his appointment as the Lubavitcher Rabbe in 1866, the Rebbe Maharash continued his communal involvement and traveled across Europe for this purpose. Between 1868 and 1880 he frequently traveled within Russia and abroad, visiting various health spas and physicians, and engaging in communal matters. Based on the enclosed letter, Rebbe Maharash purchased the present Seder plate on one of his trips abroad.

Maximum size: 46.5X75 cm. Good condition.

Silver snuffbox used by Rebbe Shalom Dov Ber Schneersohn – the Rashab of Lubavitch, during Pesach.

Rectangular box. Silver (84), marked: Moscow, 1852; maker's mark: "AB". Illustrations of castles and palaces, framed by foliate pattern (niello), featured on the bottom and lid of the box.

Letter of authenticity enclosed (handwritten note, in English), signed in Hebrew by his granddaughter Rebbetzin Chana Gurary (1899-1991), eldest daughter of Rebbe Rayatz: "I hereby gift… my grandfather's Pessach tabak box. The Rashab was very careful that even the snuff before Pessach should be checked. There was Bochrim in the Yeshiva who my grandfather trusted who did the checking". Dated - February 18, 1990. A wooden box which may have also been used by the Rebbe or his family is enclosed (the box was given together with the snuffbox, though it is not mentioned in the letter).

The Rebbes of Chabad were famously meticulous during the days of Pesach; among the precautionary measures customarily observed by them, Rebbe Rashab and Rebbe Rayatz took care to consume exclusively Kosher-for-Passover smoking tobacco and snuff. According to the enclosed letter, the present snuffbox was used by the Rebbe Rashab specifically during the days of Pesach (see next lot for a snuff box used by his son the Rebbe Rayatz for the same purpose).

Approx. 8.5X5.5 cm. Good condition. The attached box is damaged.

PLEASE NOTE: Item description was shortened in translation. For further information, please refer to Hebrew text.

Crystal plate used by Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneerson, the Rebbe Rayatz of Lubavitch, during Pesach 1940.

Produced by the Cambridge Glass Company, Ohio, [second half of the 1930s]. The plate is divided into two equal parts, and decorated with medallions and flowers (Rose Point etching).

Letter of authenticity enclosed (handwritten note, in English), signed in Hebrew by Rebbetzin Chana Gurary (1899-1991), eldest daughter of Rebbe Rayatz: "I hereby gift… the split dish used by my father during Pessach 1940. We were in Lakewood at the time, he ate cooked vegetable dishes from it. It was part of the Rosepoint set of dishes we used that Pessach". Dated - March 4, 1990. Enclosed is a wooden box, which was likely used in "Beit Rabbi" (the box was given together with the present plate, but is not mentioned in the letter of authenticity).

Chabad Rebbes used to place their most valuable utensils on the Seder table, in commemoration of the "great possessions" the Israelites took with them upon leaving Egypt.

The First Pesach of Rebbe Rayatz in the United States

When WWII broke out in 1939, Rebbe Rayatz, his mother Rebbetzin Shterna Sarah, his wife Rebbetzin Nechama Dina and his daughter Rebbetzin Chana and her husband, R. Shemaryahu Gurary, were living in perilous conditions in German-occupied Warsaw. After several months of travail and wandering, on Tuesday 9th Adar II, the Rayatz and his family finally reached American shores. After a short reception at the port, the Rayatz arrived at his temporary quarters – Room 609 at the Greystone Hotel on Broadway and 91st Street in Manhattan NY.

Immediately thereafter, the Agudas Chasidei Chabad invested great efforts in finding an appropriate permanent residence for the rebbe and his family. R. Shlomo Aharon Kazarnovsky headed the committee established for this purpose.

Rebbe Rayatz and his family celebrated the first Pesach in the USA in Lakewood, NJ. They remained for close to a month in Lakewood, 8th Nissan to 7th Iyar 1940, then returning to Greystone Hotel in New York on 7th Iyar 1940.

With the approach of Rebbe Rayatz's first Pesach in the United States, R. Shlomo Aharon Karzanovsky purchased for him several crystal dishes from the Cambridge Glass company [For other dishes which R. Karzanovsky bought for the Rayatz for Pesach, see Kedem Online Auction 35, items no. 8 and 9 (a pair of plates and pair of cups), and Kedem Online Auction 38, items no. 11 and 12 (Candlesticks and a pitcher)]. According to the enclosed letter, Rebbe Rayatz used the present plate on Pesach 1940, in the resort town of Lakewood.

On 19th Elul 1940, after some six months of temporary residence, the Rayatz and his family moved to their new home at 770 Eastern Parkway in the center of Crown Heights, Brooklyn. There, the Rayatz rebuilt the Chabad court and its institutions, heading them until his passing on 10th Shevat, 1950.

Maximum diameter: 20 cm. Good condition.

PLEASE NOTE: Item description was shortened in translation. For further information, please refer to Hebrew text.

Two salt shakers which belonged to Rebbe Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn – the Rayatz of Lubavitch.

Glass body; silver cover (marked: "Sterling").

Letter of authenticity enclosed (handwritten note, in English), signed in Hebrew by Rebbetzin Chanah Gurary (1899-1991), eldest daughter of Rebbe Rayatz: "I hereby gift... the salt & paper shakers used by my father while at the Greystone Hotel when we arrived in 1940. He continued to use these until 1945. He got different ones then and gave me these at the time". Dated – November 5, 1989. A wooden box which may have also been used by the Rebbe or his family is enclosed (the box was given together with the salt shakers, though it is not mentioned in the letter).

First years in the USA

In 1939, with the outbreak of WWII, Rebbe Rayatz, his mother Rebbetzin Shterna Sarah, his wife Rebbetzin Nechama Dina, and his daughter Rebbetzin Chana and her husband, R. Shemaryahu Gurary were stranded in Warsaw under German occupation, their lives in great danger. After several months of travail and wandering, the Rebbe and his entourage reached the United States on Tuesday 9th Adar II, 1940. Following a short reception at the port, the Rayatz arrived at his temporary quarters – Room 609 at the Greystone Hotel on Broadway and 91st Street in Manhattan New York.

About half a year later, the Rayatz and his entourage moved to 770 Eastern Parkway, in the center of the Crown Heights neighborhood in Brooklyn, New York. From his home at 770, the Rayatz reestablished the Chabad Chassidic court and its institutes. There he met community leaders and activists, held private audiences ("Yechidus") with Chassidim, wrote letters to all parts of the world, and worked unceasingly to strengthen and support Judaism and the Chassidut. The Rayatz continued his activities for ten years until his passing on 10th Shevat, 1950.

According to the enclosed letter of authenticity, Rebbe Rayatz used the present salt shakers during the first five years of his residence in the USA, 1940-1945.

Approx. 6 cm. Good conditions. Bends and defects to salt shakers' covers.

PLEASE NOTE: Item description was shortened in translation. For further information, please refer to Hebrew text.