Stamp review: The Sehrane Festival (2019-09-18)

The Sehrane Festival | חג הסהרנה

The Kurdish-Jewish Sehrane Festival, more commonly known as the Saharana, was the subject of a stamp issued by Israel Post on September 18th, 2019. Designed by Mario Sermoneta and Meir Eshel, it was the second in an Ethnic Festivals in Israel series after a Mimouna Festival stamp issued on May 1st. The Sehrane stamp depicts two men standing in the foreground, each playing a traditional Kurdish musical instrument and dressed in festive clothing, while behind them seven dancers in a field are swinging their legs to the pair's music. Blue, gold and green are the prominent colors of the stamp, and the attached tab features a Kurdish Torah scroll case.

In the pamphlet issued as an accompaniment to the stamp, this is the explanation given in English for the Sehrane festival's origin:

The Sehrane Festival stems from the Jewish community in Kurdistan, where it was celebrated annually in the springtime, on the day after the last day of Passover. It is a celebration of renewal and joy meant to bring the Jewish community together and typically included joint festive meals held outdoors, singing contests and music played on instruments such as the daula (a large drum with skins stretched over both ends of a wooden cylinder) and the zorana (a traditional wooden wind instrument) as well as communal gatherings.

Israel has issued stamps in the past honoring the legacy of Mizrahi Jews, but it got off to a late start in this regard. It wasn't until January and September 1970 that stamps were dedicated specifically to Mizrahi Jewry, commemorating twenty years since Operations Magic Carpet and Ezra & Nehemiah, respectively. These were followed in 1973 by a stamp issued in tribute to the ingathering of North Africa's Jews. Then came a long lull until 1992, when a stamp was dedicated to the Ben Ish Chai; 1997, when a three-stamp set featuring the traditional clothing of Ethiopian, Kurdish and Thessalonian Jews was issued; and 1999, when two two-stamp sets were issued featuring the traditional clothing of Yemenite, Indian, Moroccan, and Bucharan Jews. Addressing the shift from suppression to celebration of internal Jewish diversity on the part of the Israeli establishment, the pamphlet states:

As part of the "melting pot" concept the new immigrants were expected to abandon the traditions they brought from their native lands and embrace the image and traditions of the new Israeli. This attitude changed over the years and was replaced by one that honored and cherished the immense cultural wealth brought by the Olim.

On a purely esthetic level, the Sehrane stamp earns high marks thanks to the visually compelling nature of the scene it depicts. The artists captured the sound, motion and outdoor ambience of the festival through an array of softly applied vivid colors and clever use of depth. Rather than overcrowd the scene with detail, the focus on music and dance as the principal motifs gives the scene space and invites the viewer to observe the performers while relaxing on the grass, as it were. Are the two gentlemen in the foreground father and son? The implication is that they are, further suggesting a communal intimacy among the festivalgoers.

Beyond its esthetic appeal, as a descendant of Kurdish Jews from my family's paternal side, the Sehrane stamp is especially meaningful to me on an emotional level. Growing up, the Saharana was rarely mentioned on the family moshav. It was only as an adult that I learned of the festival's existence, and even then the few people I could find that still remembered it could only do so vaguely. By contrast, a few weeks after the stamp was issued, Jerusalem hosted a large public Saharana event on the lawn of Sacher Park, complete with religious ceremonies, dance performances, and live music. The Sehrane stamp isn't recalling an extinct tradition; it is part of an ancient tradition's resurgence in modern Israeli society.

Bottom line: 5/5 -- Strong buy. And as of now, the Sehrane stamp is my leading contender for 2019 Stamp of the Year.