POMEGRANATES!!

This Masterpiece is proudly displayed in the dining room of Matt Kaplan and Caroline Helton.  It represents one of the Seven Species.

The Seven Species are seven types of fruits and grains enumerated in the Hebrew Bibleas being special products of the Land of Israel.  Jewish tradition teaches that the pomegranate is a symbol for righteousness, because it is said to have 613 seeds which corresponds with the 613 mitzvot or commandments of the Torah.   The pomegranate is one of the few images which appear on ancient coins of Judea as a holy symbol, and today many Torah scrolls are stored while not in use with a pair of decorative hollow silver “pomegranates” (rimmonim) placed over the two upper scroll handles. Some Jewish scholars believe that it was the pomegranate that was the forbidden fruit of the Garden of Eden.