Zephyros
Hope I'm not too late to join the party
Actually a very interesting find. Even at face value with no translation it seems a religious page, but possibly a non-mainstream one; synagogues usually aren't decorated with naked ladies, whomever they may be.
Now, as Ross pointed out, it is difficult to make out many of the words, although I suspect this may be because of the original printing, not computerized loss of quality. However, from what I can make out, it is indeed an excerpt from the Song of Songs, starting with "thou art lovely, my wife and hath no blemish" (Chapter 4, verse 7). The rest is even more interesting, however, since it doesn't go "by the book." The Song should go on about Lebanon, but that doesn't appear to be the case here (the verse, incidentally, goes from right to left and each line is divided at her head). Here, it goes on to another verse which, because the text is fragmented, I can't find in the Song, but imagine it to be one of the racier parts with mentions of pigeons and towers and lips.
I wonder, though, why the page is called "Book of Songs" and not the original name? Perhaps something like the Sistine Chapel Moses statue with the horns, a case of mistaken translation, although that makes little sense here.
Anyway, the word next to the goblet is "drink" and below, next to the gentlewoman's middle section is written another part of the Song, but this is strange as well, it is from the beginning of the song, Chapter 1, verse 5 "I am black and comely."
The next page is a little thornier. There is a prayer at the top two lines, but again, it is written strangely, not according to the traditional way of saying it. It is the prayer one says when seeing a rainbow It reminds one of the pact God made that with the sign of the rainbow, the world would never again be destroyed. It is a little jumbled, however, and not strictly in accordance with tradition. I'm gambling that someone here has Hebrew fonts, so I'll just past the original prayer:
Translation: "Blessed art thou Lord our God, King of the World, who remembers the covenant and is loyal to his covenant and is keeper of his word". The covenant in this case is not Abrahan's, but Noah's.
The next lines seem to have meanings, I mean, they're words, but I can't make out all of it. From the break in the third line it goes something like "Blessed something something all the world," and then a break, then "something something all by His Will" or something like that. It's obviously a prayer, but most Jewish prayers start with Blessed and end with His Will, so it's really hard to tell which. I'm not religious, someone who is might shed some light. I'll see if I can't find one in the next few days.
The prayer is a strange one to quote, though. Not too popular or well known, and the fact that it comes from the Noah story and the naked woman seems to suggest to me that the text is from some sort of Jews for Jesus or something like that who believe in the Noahide laws that were set on all of mankind, keeping basic morality and modes of conduct, but I could be on the wrong track (in a purely Jewish text, no pictures of people would be drawn, much less a naked woman).
Actually a very interesting find. Even at face value with no translation it seems a religious page, but possibly a non-mainstream one; synagogues usually aren't decorated with naked ladies, whomever they may be.
Now, as Ross pointed out, it is difficult to make out many of the words, although I suspect this may be because of the original printing, not computerized loss of quality. However, from what I can make out, it is indeed an excerpt from the Song of Songs, starting with "thou art lovely, my wife and hath no blemish" (Chapter 4, verse 7). The rest is even more interesting, however, since it doesn't go "by the book." The Song should go on about Lebanon, but that doesn't appear to be the case here (the verse, incidentally, goes from right to left and each line is divided at her head). Here, it goes on to another verse which, because the text is fragmented, I can't find in the Song, but imagine it to be one of the racier parts with mentions of pigeons and towers and lips.
I wonder, though, why the page is called "Book of Songs" and not the original name? Perhaps something like the Sistine Chapel Moses statue with the horns, a case of mistaken translation, although that makes little sense here.
Anyway, the word next to the goblet is "drink" and below, next to the gentlewoman's middle section is written another part of the Song, but this is strange as well, it is from the beginning of the song, Chapter 1, verse 5 "I am black and comely."
The next page is a little thornier. There is a prayer at the top two lines, but again, it is written strangely, not according to the traditional way of saying it. It is the prayer one says when seeing a rainbow It reminds one of the pact God made that with the sign of the rainbow, the world would never again be destroyed. It is a little jumbled, however, and not strictly in accordance with tradition. I'm gambling that someone here has Hebrew fonts, so I'll just past the original prayer:
בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה ה' אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, זוֹכֵר הַבְּרִית וְנֶאֱמַן בִּבְרִיתוֹ וְקַיָּם בְּמַאֲמָרוֹ.
Translation: "Blessed art thou Lord our God, King of the World, who remembers the covenant and is loyal to his covenant and is keeper of his word". The covenant in this case is not Abrahan's, but Noah's.
The next lines seem to have meanings, I mean, they're words, but I can't make out all of it. From the break in the third line it goes something like "Blessed something something all the world," and then a break, then "something something all by His Will" or something like that. It's obviously a prayer, but most Jewish prayers start with Blessed and end with His Will, so it's really hard to tell which. I'm not religious, someone who is might shed some light. I'll see if I can't find one in the next few days.
The prayer is a strange one to quote, though. Not too popular or well known, and the fact that it comes from the Noah story and the naked woman seems to suggest to me that the text is from some sort of Jews for Jesus or something like that who believe in the Noahide laws that were set on all of mankind, keeping basic morality and modes of conduct, but I could be on the wrong track (in a purely Jewish text, no pictures of people would be drawn, much less a naked woman).