Cane with Silver Handle Used by Rebbe Rayatz - With Letter of Authenticity by His Eldest Daughter Rebbetzin Chana Gurary

Cane with Silver Handle Used by Rebbe Rayatz - With Letter of Authenticity by His Eldest Daughter Rebbetzin Chana Gurary

Cane for Shabbat of Rebbe Yosef Yitzchak Schneerson, Rebbe Rayatz of Lubavitch.
Reddish-brown wood, with an Art Nouveau silver handle (marked: mark of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, 1872-1922, and maker's mark).
Letter of authenticity enclosed (handwritten note, in English), signed in Hebrew by Rebbetzin Chana Gurary (1899-1991), eldest daughter of Rebbe Rayatz: "I hereby gift… my father's silver cane, which he used on Shabbos and on rare occasions during the week". The letter is dated September 3, 1989.

The Rebbe Rayatz owned a number of canes which he used on various occasions. In many photographs of the Rayatz, including photographs taken during his travels in the United States (1929-1930), and especially photographs taken after his return to Europe, when his health deteriorated and it became difficult for him to walk, he is seen using a walking cane. In the 1930s, the Rayatz lived in Latvia and in Poland, however, his state of health necessitated lengthy visits to various health spas on the outskirts of Riga, Vienna and Paris. The photos taken at that period show the rebbe using several different canes (as do many photos from the 1940s, after the Rebbe Rayatz fled occupied Europe and settled in the United States).
Based on the enclosed letter of authenticity, the Rebbe Rayatz used the present cane primarily on Shabbat and on rare occasions during the week (presumably, this cane, marked with a silver hallmark of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, was purchased by the Rayatz in the 1930s, during his stay at a spa near Vienna).

Length: 90 cm. Handle: 10 cm. Good condition. Abrasions and loss to paint (mainly at the bottom of the cane). Break to silver handle.