Periodically the question arises, what is the origin of the six-pointed “brewers’ star”? The symbol has been used for centuries in German and international beer iconography and commercial signs – a context with ostensibly little connection to Jewry. Yet, as many people know, the star also symbolizes Judaism.
To be sure, the hexagram is not exclusive to Jews, but has long been associated with them, the roots going back (at least) to the early common era.
The brewing star is sometimes depicted as five-pointed, for example on the Lone Star beer label in Texas. Typically, it is six-pointed, sometimes with interlocking triangles as seen above at a German tavern.
Initially, the brewers’ star predominated in Bavaria and the Czech territories. With the spread of bottom-fermentation (lager-brewing), brewers as distant as Strasbourg, Alsace and St. Louis, Missouri displayed the star in some fashion.
The most common explanation is the star is a symbol of alchemy. The premier consumer beer writer, the Briton Michael Jackson (1942-2007) upheld this theory in The World Guide to Beer (1977). For a recent expression of this view see this page, at the Museum of Beer and Brewing in Milwaukee.
The alchemy theory focuses on the primal elements of earth, fire, and water, and sees the star as linking them to symbolize the brewer’s art. Malt is from barley, barley is grown in soil, and the mash is heated and boiled in water made hot by fire.
It seems, or at first blush, counter-intuitive that Jews could have anything to do with the brewing star. For one thing, they have historically played a small role in the brewing business, whether in German Europe or elsewhere.
They had some role in hop factoring in Germany, and in the retailing of alcohol in many countries. They also made marked contributions to brewing science as I’ve discussed numerous times before. Eminent science figures include Anton Schwarz, Max Henius, the Wallerstein brothers, and Joseph Owades, all U.S.-based.
To be sure, some notable breweries were (or are) owned in whole or in part by Jews. Examples of past ownership are Ottakringer in Vienna (the Kuffner family), and Rheingold in Brooklyn, New York (the Liebmanns), both with 19th century roots. The famed Lowenbrau in Munich had, it appears, partial Jewish ownership before the Nazi era. Yet, in most countries the Jewish role in brewing was minimal. So how could the brewing star be related to them?
Another reason for an apparent lack of connection, and I’ll be frank here, is the history of German enmity to Jews. It goes back centuries and culminated in the Holocaust. Why would brewing, a German cultural heritage par excellence, take as symbol something originating with an unpopular and often persecuted minority?
Yet, a German scholar-brewer, Dr. Matthias Trum of Heller Trum Brewery has argued the brewing star may have a Jewish origin. Heller Trum in Bamberg is known internationally for its distinctive range of smoked beers, marketed under the Schlenkerla label.
A summary of Dr. Trum’s 2002 doctoral thesis on this topic appears in this page of the Schlenkerla website. Note especially his conclusions. The language is somewhat stilted but this results simply from awkward translation.
He argues that early Jewish communities in Bavaria and Prague displayed the star as a sign of physical protection. It was meant, in other words, to ward off bad omens. Flags of Jewish militias in Prague displayed the star, as did some Jewish homes and businesses.
The symbol, he argues, was more secular than religious in nature, but still Jewish in character. Perhaps the Star of David on the flag of the State of Israel is a modern example.
Surrounding Gentile communities, Trum suggests, may have adopted the symbol from Jewish communities, to similar purpose. Breweries were particularly liable to fire and other accidents, so displaying a sign against bad omens is plausible, with the original rationale and Jewish origin being forgotten in time.
Dr. Trum therefore rejects alchemy as the likely explanation for the brewing star, despite it being commonly cited. He may be right, and in any case has made a thoughtful and original argument.
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