Yad (Torah pointer)

This Torah pointer is decorated with archaic ornaments in scrimshaw technique, a special engraving on organic materials such as ivory or horn. Federal President Heinz Fischer received this object as a gift in the mid-1990s from Leon Zelman (1928-2007), the founder and director of the Jewish Welcome Service. In memory of Leon Zelman, the Federal President donated the Torah pointer to the Jewish Museum in 2011. Since 2013, the Leon Zelman Prize has been awarded to individuals, projects and organisations that have worked in Zelman's spirit for the remembrance of the Shoah and the dialogue between today's Austria and Austrian Holocaust victims and their descendants.