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Jewisheart.com
Buy a genuine Israeli Shofar
Shofar is the religious instrument used in all traditional Jewish ceremonies. Depending on what material is used in it as well as the kind of ornamentation on it, the shofar is suitable for religious or regular ceremonies.
Materials you can use
A shofar can be made using the horn of an animal such as gazelle, a ram or even an antelope. However, the main criteria to make a Yemenite shofar is that the horn should not be made of solid bone. Instead, it should have cartilage so that it can be hollowed out easily. In fact, if you look up the meaning of the word shofar, it means hollow. Animals such as the gazelle, antelope and the ram are all kosher. These animals chew cud and have hooves, which are split. If you want to make a shofar from a ram’s horn, you can procure it from a regular slaughterhouse.
Boiling is essential
The preparatory part of making a Shofar is to boil it in water for as long as 2 or 5 hours. If you add washing soda into the water it will facilitate easier cleansing at a later stage.
Cleansing
You need to remove all the cartilage out from the horn. You can use a pick for this purpose. Depending on the length and size of the horn, the cartilage removal can take anywhere from just thirty minutes to a couple of hours.
Cutting
You will need to take soft wire and measure the length of the hollow span inside the horn. Then extend this measurement by an additional inch and cut off this tip using a hacksaw or coping saw. Make sure the inside and outside of the horn is very dry before you cut it.
Drilling the hole
Next, you need to take an electrically operated drill to make a hole of 1/8th inch diameter. Start from the end, which was cut off and continue drilling until it reaches the hollow portion.
Carving
You will need to use an electrically operated modeling kit for this purpose. Start by carving a shape of a bell on the shofar end. You can look at a trumpet to get an idea about the shape. Make sure to sand or smoothen out the edge of the shofar. You can use some of the smoothening tools in the kit to smooth the mouthpiece portion.
Customizing the mouthpiece
Depending on the overall size of the shofar as well as the person who will be playing it, you need to reshape the mouthpiece. You may need to reshape it or even increase or decrease the size according to this. Try asking an experienced shofar player to test the instrument.
Intricate designs
You can leave the shofar as it is or make it more beautiful by carving ornate designs on its surface. Make sure that there are no cracks, holes or paint on the shofar surface. If there is any, you cannot use the shofar for any religious ceremonies and it will be rendered useless.
Buy a genuine Israeli Shofar
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