Vintage MidMod Brass Shalom Hamsa (Hand of Miriam) stamped Oppenheim Israel

1960-70s Made in Oppenheim, Israel

Notes: The Hamsa hand is an upright hand that seems to have two thumbs pointing in opposite directions, with three fingers together in the middle. It has a large eye on the palm, which is one of its most striking features and a big part of the Hamsa symbol. It also has various swirls and diagonal lines coming up from the eye symbol and into the fingers.

This is what gives away the religious symbolism in the Hamsa hand symbol. It makes people wonder if they need to be of a certain religion to wear jewelry with the Hamsa hand.

The symbol is a hand, meaning that it has five fingers. Therefore, you can see how in the Hebrew tradition, it would get the word “Hamsa,” which means five. What’s interesting, is that this symbol meaning five also has quite a few names, and that’s because it applies to the religious symbolism of various cultures.

In the Hebrew religion, the Hamsa hand is called the “Hand of Miriam.” Miriam was the sister of Moses (and another brother, Aaron), the large figure in Hebrew history who led his people out of the captivity of the Egyptians.

It is believed that since the agrarian Hebrews had been enslaved by the Egyptians, they wanted a way to ward off evil, including the Evil Eye, and thus were drawn to the existing symbol of the Hamsa because it had an eye in the palm.

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