Iron Tablets

From the Bernard Museum of Judaica - Justify Your Existence exhibit catalog: Keren Tel Hai Palestine, ca. 1937 Keren Tel Hai was a monetary fund originally established in the wake of the 1929 riots that swept across the Land of Israel, in which hundreds died. The riots consisted primarily of attacks by Arabs on Jews and their property. The fund was dedicated to training young Jews in self-defense and took its name from a former Jewish settlement in northern Israel that was the site of an early battle in which the Zionist national hero, Joseph Trumpeldor, had been killed. Trumpeldor’s final utterance is reputed to have been “It does not matter; it is good to die for our country.” His heroism was admired across the political spectrum, and both Revisionist and Socialist Zionists appropriated his name and memory. This poster was reproduced frequently and often included commemorative inscriptions of names of donors on the “iron tablets.” Translation from Hebrew: The State of Israel.