For the first time, a Jewish symbol is on display in the lobby of Oslo's most exclusive hotel, which hosts the annual Nobel Prize ceremony.
It took months of talks between the Grand Hotel, the local Jewish community, and the Jewish donors to reach an agreement to display the menorah in the hotel lobby. What apparently decided the matter was the high number of Jewish Nobel laureates, as well as the fact that the hotel has in the past displayed symbols of other religions.
The 24-karat gold candelabra, which stands 65 centimeters (26 inches) high, is of the type used on Hanukkah, with eight main branches for each of the eight days of the holiday, plus a ninth that is used to light the others. It was donated by the Philipsons, Jewish natives of Oslo who now live in New York.
The collaboration between the hotel and the local Jewish community started two years ago when the community held a procession in honor of a new Torah scroll for the city's Chabad House. Community elders said the parade, a tradition when a new Torah scroll is brought to a synagogue, was something that had never taken place in Norway.
After the parade, the participants met at the Grand Hotel for a meal.
Angelica Montez De Oca, director of Sales and Commercial Development at the Grand Hotel, said that after the parade and the gala meal, "Mr. and Mrs. Philipson expressed a desire to give us the menorah – such a wonderful gift – as a gesture of thanks."
