[Avodah] Shape of Luchos

[Zvi Lampel]

A short while ago there was portracted discussion in the English Yated about the legitimacy of the shape of the luchos as popularly depicted (each of the two curved at the top), given that Chazal describe them as cubical.

Some weeks ago I spent a Shabbos in the Yeshiva of Staten Island, whose Aron has a depiction with the curved tops. But I then noticed that going along the bottom of the luchos was a solid gold-colored curve. It occurred to me that perhaps it was really a corrupted depiction (ala the illustrations, limited by the available technology to typesetters, and highly corruptible regarding details, we find in Gemoras and other ancient texts) of an open book, the way one would draw it--two curves at the top and two at the bottom. Perhaps this depiction was never meant to be of the luchos in the first place, but of an open Chumash!

     ^ ! ^ <--- My futile attempt to illustrate with the even more limited technology 
                of email text writing.
       !
     ^  ^ 

Zvi Lampel