Alright, Chanukah starts tonight, which means it's time for me to finally make a post about different kinds of menorahs.
This right here? This is the Temple Menorah:
There's some debate over whether the branches were straight or curved, but here's a few things we do know:
It had seven branches of equal length.
It was made of one solid piece of gold
It was at least five feet tall.
The Temple Menorah is what people mean when they talk about The Menorah. It's what you'll see on historical or commemorative artifacts such as the Arch of Titus in Rome or Israeli currency:
During the time when the Temple stood in Jerusalem, the High Priest lit all seven flames on this Menorah every day (using the aforementioned pure olive oil):
No one lights this on Chanukah.
This is a Chanukah menorah:
There are countless variations, but here are the important things:
It has eight branches of equal length, plus a ninth "helper" branch, known as the shamash, which is set apart from the rest of the branches and used to light the others.
It can be made of any material.
It is usually used with wax candles or oil, but, if necessary, one can use anything that burns.
In Hebrew, this kind of menorah is called a chanukiah.
Some Chanukah menorahs, like the one shown above, have the shamash in the middle. Others have it on the side:
Regardless, this kind of menorah is the one that has been lit by Jews on Chanukah for thousands of years. It's the menorah you'll seen in photographs of Jewish households, including this famous picture taken in Germany in 1931:
(The message written on the back of the photo reads: "Death to Judah"/ So the flag says/ "Judah will live forever"/ So the light answers)
On Chanukah, whoever is lighting the menorah will first light the shamash, then the number of candles corresponding to whichever night of Chanukah it is. The first night, only the rightmost candle is lit, the second night the two rightmost, etc. (The newest candle is always lit first):
Again, a valid Chanukah menorah has eight branches of equal length, along with a shamash. There is no such thing as a Chanukah menorah with six branches of equal length and a longer seventh branch, and no valid Chanukah menorah has eight branches of completely different lengths.
If you see either of the above designs (or anything similar) on Chanukah-themed decor, it tells you the creator has absolutely no idea what they're doing and couldn't be bothered to do more than two seconds of research to make sure their product was accurate. Anyone who knows anything about the holiday will laugh at these. (They may buy them anyway, especially if that's all that's available-- my new Chanukah sweater has an invalid menorah pattern, but it's adorable, so I'm still going to wear it. But I am also laughing about it and invite you all to do the same.)
Anyway, have a happy Chanukah, everyone!
