By Adam Bedell
University Provost Herman A. Berliner found his old wooden childhood dreidel nearly twelve years ago and it is now part of The Provost Collects: Dreidels as Art, an exhibition in the Axinn Library.
Berliner’s collection started by mistake when he decided to buy a new dreidel after finding the one he used as a child in his parent’s apartment. Astonished at the variety that existed, he settled on a silver one with intricate detail that was larger than his original. When he brought the dreidel home it would not spin and disappointed, he planned to return it.
“The looks were there, but the functionality wasn’t,” Berliner said.
When packing the dreidel, however, he admired the beauty of it and instead decided to buy another.
At his house there is not enough room to display the dreidels so he keeps them bunched together. However, when the University’s Museum presented them, his appreciation for their beauty grew. His plan is to one day donate the dreidels to a museum that will display them as a collection.
The idea for the exhibition came when a friend of Berliner said he would make a contribution to the University if they went on display. Berliner’s collection has grown to over 300 dreidels, 150 of which were selected by the museum to be displayed.
Each year at Hanukkah his wife gives him one for each night. This year he received one that looks like a lady bug and another that looks like the clock face on one of the University’s towers. They are unique, but cannot spin, he said.
Berliner is still searching for the perfect dreidel, “One that spins well and is fabulous looking,” he said.
For now he enjoys the fond memories the dreidels bring and the new ones he receives sharing them with his family.

University Provost Herman A. Berliner found his old wooden childhood dreidel nearly twelve years ago and it is now part of The Provost Collects (The Chronicle)