Wittenberg, Germany
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The "Judensau" high on the Stadtkirche, and an accompanying memorial plaque on the ground nearby. The "Judensau" was a common derogatory portryal of the Jews in intimate contact with the "unpure" swine in the early middle ages.
The inscription "Schem Ha Mphoras" refers to the belief of Jewish mystics in the sacred meaning of secret combinations of numbers and words. According to the Cabala, the sequence of letters "Schem Ha Mphoras" possesed a universal power, and they were especially protected from Gentiles. This relief is thus doubly offensive.
Luther protested sharply against what was in his opinion a superstitious practice of the Jewish Cabbals and he repeatedly called on the Jews to embrace Christianity or be faced with banishment. For the middle ages this was a relatively mild position, but his aggressive speeches were easily misused for anti-Semitic campaigns.
The memorial plaque underneath the "Judensau" warns against forgetting history and repeating such past mistakes.
Related pages:
Wittenberg City Guide
Schlosskirche (Castle Church)
Lutherhalle (Luther House and Museum)
Stadtkirche St Marien (City Church)
The Luther Trail
Germany Photos