2. The high-priest had a pecidiar dress, which, as we have seen, passed to his successor at his death. This dress consisted of eight parts, as the Rabbins constantly note, the hreastpkite, the ephod with its curious girdle, the rohe of the ephod, the mitre, the hroidered coat or diaper tunic, and the girdle, the materials being gold, blue, red, crimson, and fine (-white) linen (Exod. xxviii). To the above are added, in ver. 42, the breeches or draw- ers (Lev. xvi, 4) of linen ; and to make up the number eight, some reckon the high-priest's mitre, or the plate {Y'''4) separately from the bonnet; whDe others reckon the curious girdle of the ephod separately from the ephod. In Lev. viii, 7-12, there is a complete account of the putting on of these garments by Aaron, and the whole ceremony of his consecration and that of his gons. It there appears distinctly that, besides the girdle com- mon to all the priests, the high-priest also wore the cu- rious girdle of the ephod. Of these eight articles of at- tire, four, viz. the coat or tunic, the girdle, the breeches, and the bonnet or tiu-ban, TWZjXj, instead of the mitre, r332^ (Josephus, however, whom Bahr follo\vs, calls the bonnets of the priests by the name of rS3^^. See below), belonged to the common priests. It is well known how, in the Assyrian sculptures, the king is in like maimer distinguished bj' the shape of his head- dress; and how in Persia none but the king wore the ciduris, or erect tiara. Biihr compares also the apices of the flamen Dialis. Josephus speaks of the robes {iv- ov]xaTci) of the chief priests, and the tunics and girdles of the priests, as forming part of the spoil of the Temple ( War, vi, 8, 3). Aaron, and at his death Eleazar (Numb. XX, 2G, 28), and their successors in the high-priesthood, were solemnly inaugurated into their office by being clad in these eight articles of dress on seven successive days. From the time of the second Temple, when the sacred oil (said to have been hid by Josiah, and lost) was wanting, this putting on of the garments was deemed the official investiture of the office. Hence the robes, which had used to be kept in one of the chambers of the Temple, and were by Hyrcanus deposited in the Ba- ris, which he built on purpose, were kept by Herod in the same tower, Avhich he called Antonia, so that thej' might be at his absolute disposal. The Romans did the same till the government of Vitellius, in the reign of Ti- berius, when the custody of the robes was restored to the Jews (^n/. XV, 11,4; xviii,4,3).— Smith,s. v. Tak- ing the articles of the high-priest's dress in the order in which they woidd naturally be put on, we have
(1.) The "breeches" or draicers, d'^&32?3, mihiesim', of linen, covering the loins and thighs, for purposes of modesty, as all the upper garments were loose and flow- ing. Their probable Ibrm is illustrated by the subjoined cut, from Braun {De Vestitu Sacerdotum Hebrceorum, p. 3G4), who calls attention to the bands (Talmud, D^JJ3U3) for thawing the top together, and the absence of any opening either before (n'i"i"n T\'''2, apertiuxi ad jm- denda) or behind (2p3ln n'lD, apertura ad anum).
(2.) The inner " coat," rSFlS, kutto'mtk, was a tunic or long shirt of linen, with a tesselated or diaper pat- tern, like the setting of a stone ('j^adFlj^as/itos', "broi-
k
HIGH-PRIEST
>43
HIGH-PRIEST
The Liueii
ecbes" of the Priests
ilered"). The subjoined cut (also from Braun, p. 378) will illustrate its probable form (not different from that of the ordinary Oriental under-ijarmcnt), with its sleeves and mode of fastening around the neck. See Coat.
'Broidcred l.
0 Priests.
(3.) The/7tVf//e, wi^X, ahnet', also of linen, was wound roimd the body several times from the breast down- wards, and the ends hung down to the ankles. Its form and mode of wearing may be illustrated by the subjoin- ed cuts (from Braun, p. 404). See Girdle.
(4.) The " robe;' b'^"?, me'U', of the ejjhod. This was of inferior material to tlie ephod itself, being all of blue (ver. 31), which implied its being only of " woven work" (S'nX rtbs'^, xxxix, 22). It was worn immediately luider the ephod, and was longer than it. though not so long as the broidercd coat or tunic (VSirri r"'r2), ac-
he Luien &ud e of the Piiest*.
cor.Ung to most statements (Biihr, Winer, Kalisch, etc.). Nor do the Sept. explanation of ^"^i'p, iroSiipijc, and Josephus's description of it ( War, v, 5, 7), seem to out- weigh the reasons given by Biihr for thinking that the robe only came down to the knees, for it is highly im- l^robable that the robe should thus have swept the ground. Neither does it seem likely that the sleeves of the tunic, of white diaper linen, were the only parts of it which were visible, in the case of the high-priest, when he wore the blue robe over it; for the blue robe had no sleeves, but only slits in the sides for the arms to come through. It had a hole for the head to pass through, \vith a border round it of woven work, to prevent its be- ing rent. The skirt of this robe had a remarkable trim- ming of pomegranates in blue, red, and crimson, with a bell of gold bet\veen each ]iomegranate alternately. The bells were to give a sound when, the high-priest went in and came out of (he Holy Place. Josephus, in the An- tiquities, gives no explanation of the use of the bells, but merely speaks of the studied beauty of their appearance. In his Jeicish War, however, he tells us that the bells signified thunder, and the pomegranates lightning. For Philo's very curious observations, see Lightfoot's Worlcs, ix, 25. Neither does the son of Sirach verj- distinctly explain it (Ecclus. xlv), ^vho, in his description of the high-priest's attire, seems chiefly impressed with its beauty and magnificence, and says of this trimming,