Eli Ribak’s grandfather came from Poland in 1927 to make shofars. Eli is the third generation of the Ribak family to do so. He is part of the business called Shofarot. His other partner comes from a family that migrated to Israel from Morocco. The families decided to collaborate 25 years ago.
The shofars they make come from a long family tradition, with more than 15 generations involved in making shofars.
“It started from the knowledge to use the exact process to make the best shofar. To make it more shined, polished, that will not crack easily, and that will produce a quality high sound.”
Eli said it takes approximately half a day to make a shofar. The shofars are made from ram horns and antelope horns.
He said they use ram horns because of the tradition connected to the planned sacrifice of Isaac which God provided Abraham with a substitute ram for in Genesis chapter 22. Eli added that the significance of the shofar is witnessed on the biblical holiday Yom Teruah, also called Rosh Hashanah.
“It is the judgement day that every Jew will decide what happens in the next year. For two days we are praying asking forgiveness for everything we did in the past year. We have a mitzvah (commandment) to blow the shofar. We use the ram horn to remind God of the sacrifice of Isaac. We want to remind Him of the good things from the past. It is part of the forgiveness process. Blowing the shofar started from when Israel received the Torah.”
Eli added that the Shofar is the oldest musical instrument.
How do they make a shofar?
After the ram/sheep is killed the shofar horn is a by-product. The shofar horn grows on the head of the ram. There is a bone inside the horn that is connected to the head of the ram. They have to cut the bone and take off the horn. In order to drill holes in the horn, Shofarot has to strengthen it by hitting it.
They strengthen the full part of the horn which is the end part. Next, they start the grinding and polishing process. At the end of the process the mouthpiece is made.
PROFILE: SHOFAROT
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