A Dutch silver Torah shield, C.J. Begeer, Utrecht, 1868

the backplate in the form of a cloud with trumpets and shofars protruding from a central Decalogue and surmounted by a crown inscribed In Honour of the Lord and His Torah, below an oval cartouche containing presentation inscription to the holy community of  Weesp from and dated 1876

Jewish Community of Weesp, The Netherlands

Towards the end of the 18^th century, the Jews of Weesp prayed in a synagogue in a private home.  By 1840, the building was in disrepair and the community erected a new synagogue.  In 1869, the year after this shield was presented, the Jewish population of Weesp was 186 people.  During the Second World War the synagogue was pillaged yet the Holy Ark was left unscathed; most of the Jewish population perished.  The Community was dissolved in 1947 and the former synagogue used as a garage.