I shot this because it shows the mix of cultural/religious backgrounds of Israeli Jews. The man seated is a Yemenite scribe. Scribes write religious documents by hand on parchment. I believe there was a tradition among the Yemenite Jews of the scribes writing letters on behalf of illiterate people too. This man was a fixture on Ben Yehudah street in Jerusalem for years. A modern orthodox man on the right is looking at whatever he's writing, and a Hassidic man on the left in black hat is also curious. The Hassidim still dress as they did in 19th century northern Europe, despite the middle east heat.
niamh
07-Feb-2005 18:23
whatever he's doing, he seems to be drawing a crowd. a very interesting street scene.
Guest
07-Feb-2005 12:13
Interesting scene well captured Howard. In addition to what the man is writing/drawing, I'm intrigued by the shape of the guy's head on the left: it reminds of the coneheads movie! :o) Cheers, John
