"Healthy Soul in a Healthy Body, " (Hebrew) medal for Bezalel School athletes. Relief with biblical image of Samson vanquishing the lion. Created by Ze'ev Raban and Meir Gur-Arieh, Jerusalem, [ca. 1913]. Round medallion bearing biblical image of Samson vanquishing the lion. Image encircled by two (Hebrew) inscriptions: "Healthy Soul in a Healthy Body, " and "Gymnastics Association of Bezalel." Marked (in Hebrew): "Illustration [by] Ravitzki [Raban], molded [by] Horodetsky [Gur-Arieh]." Inlaid in a round wooden frame. Alongside its art studies and its support of creative workshops and studios, the Bezalel School placed an emphasis on cultural activities, which, among other things, involved the establishment of an athletic association. The importance attached to physical fitness reflected one of the many ways in which Classical Greek concepts were adopted as part of the school's ethos, that demanded a synthesis of the plastic arts, poetry, theater, music, and sports. For another version of this medal, in bronze, see the artworks of Ze'ev Raban listed under the entry "Ze'ev Raban" in the website "Information Center for Israeli Art, " sponsored by the Israel Museum. Also see: "Ze'ev Raban: A Hebrew Symbolist, " item no. 70 (see below). Diam. (medallion): 4 cm. Good condition. Diam. (wooden frame): 11.5 cm. Good condition. References: 1. Shilo-Cohen, Nurit, "Bezalel: 1906-1929," exhibition catalogue, The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, 1983. 2. Etty Hilevitz and Batsheva Goldman Ida, "Ze'ev Raban: A Hebrew Symbolist, " exhibition catalogue, Tel Aviv Museum of Art and Yad Yitzhak Ben Zvi (Ben Zvi Institute), Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, 2001, item no. 70. Provenance: 1. Estate of Mordechai Avniel, director of the Small Sculpture Section of the Bezalel School's Sculpture Department. 2. Estate of Bezalel Avniel. 3. Private collection.