of the burning of the man-god, like Hercules or Sandan, who again represented the old spirit of vegetation which was dying away in spring to revive with the new vegetation. The earliest mention, however, of this burning of Haman in elligy cannot be traced back earlier than the Talmud in the 5th century.
In connexion with Purim many quaint customs were introduced by the Jews of later times. All means are adapted to increase the hilarity of the two days, which are filled with feasting, dancing, singing and making merry generally. In Germany it was even customary for men to dress up as women, and women as men, against the command of Deut. xxii. 5. In Frankfort the women were allowed to open their lattice Windows in the synagogue in honour of the deliverance brought about by Esther. Execration of Haman, as the typical persecutor of the Jews, took various forms. In Germanywooden mallets were used in the synagogue to beat the benches when Haman's name ww read out from the scroll of Esther, and during the festivities these mallets were sometimes used on the heads of the bystanders. Cakes were made of a certain shape to be eaten by the children, which were called, in Germany, Hamantaschen (Haman-pockets) and Hamanohren (Haman-ears), and in Italy, Orecchie d'Aman. In Italy a puppet representing Haman was set up on high amidst shouts of vengeance and blowing of trumpets. In Caucasus the women made a wooden. block to represent Haman, which, on being discovered by the men on their return to the synagogue, was thrown into the fire. Besides gifts to friends, parents made Purim gifts to their children, especially in the form of Purim cakes. To preside over these festivities it was customary to have a master of the ceremonies, who was called king in Provence, somewhat after the manner of the Feast of Fools. In later days the same function was performed by the Purim Rabbi, who often indulged in parodies of the ritual.
With Purim is connected the only trace of a true folk-drama among Jews. The first Spanish drama written by Jews was entitled “Esther,” by Solomon Usque and Lazaro Gratiano, published in 1567; and there is another entitled “ Comedia famosa de Aman y Mordechay, " produced anonymously in Leiden in 1699. Among the German Jews Purim-Spiele were frequent and can be traced back to the 16th century, where there is reference to their being regularly performed at Tannhausen. The earliest one of these printed was entitled “Ahaswerosh-Spiel, ” appeared at Frankfort in 1708, and was reprinted by Schudt in Juedische Merck-Wuerdigkeiten, ii. 314 seq. These were followed by a large number of similar reproductions, none of any great merit, but often showing ingenuity in parodying more serious portions of the Jewish ritual (Davidson, Parody, pp. 27, 50, 199–203).
Besides the general festival of Purim, various communities of Jews have instituted special local Purims to commemorate occasions when they have been saved from disaster. Thus the Jews of Cairo celebrated Purim on the 28th of Adar in memory of their being miraculously saved from the persecution of Ahmed Pasha in 1524. The Jews of Frankfort celebrate their special Purim on the 20th of Adar because of their deliverance from persecution by Fettmilch in 1616. The Jews of Algiers similarly celebrated the repulse of the emperor Charles V. in 1541, by which they escaped coming once more into the yoke of the Spaniards. Similar occasions for rejoicing were introduced by individuals into their families to celebrate their escape from danger. Thus Abraham Danzig celebrated in this manner his escape from the results of an explosion of a powder magazine at Wilna in 1804. Rabbi Enoch Altschul of Prague recorded his own escape on the 22nd of Tebet 1623 in a special roll or megillah, which was to be read by his family on that date with rejoicing similar to the general Purim. David Brandeis of Jung-Bunzlau in Bohemia was saved from an accusation of poisoning on the 10th of Adar 1731, and instituted a similar family Purim celebration in consequence.
See Biblical Dictionaries of Hastings and Cheyne, s.v.; Jew. Ency., s.v. “Purim”; “Purim Plays,” “Purims, Special”; W. Erbt, Die Purimsage (Berlin, 1900); Abrahams, Jewish Life in the Middle Ages; Lagarde, Purim, ein Beitrag zur Geschichte der Religion (Göttingen, 1885); Steinschneider, Purim und Parodie (Berlin, 1902); P. Haupt, Purim (Leipzig, 1906); Davidson, Parody in Jewish Literature, pp. 21, 27, 30, 135–9 (New York, 1908). (J. Ja.)
PURIN, C5H4N4, in chemistry, the name given by Emil
Fischer to the parent substance of a large group of compounds,
the more important of which are sarcine, xanthine, uric acid,
adenine, paraxanthine, guanine, theophylline, theobromine and caffeine. Its formula is shown in the inset, the positions taken by substituent atoms or groups being numbered as shown.
| (1)N＝CH(6) | |
| (2)HC(5)C·NH(7) | |
| |||| |  CH(8)
|
| (3)N—C—N | |
| (4) (9) | |
| Purin. |
E. Fischer (Ber., 31, p. 2564) obtained it in 1898 by reducing 2·6-di-iodo purin, obtained from 2·6·8 trichlor purin (see below sub Uric acid), hydriodic acid and phosphonium iodide at 0°, with zinc dust and water, the zinc double salt so obtained being decomposed by sulphuretted hydrogen, the precipitated zinc sulphide filtered oh' and the solution concentrated. It has also been synthesized by O. Isay (Ber., 1906, 39, p. 250) from 5-nitro-uracil. This substance with phosphorus oxychloride gives 2-4-dichlor-5-nitro pyrimidine, which with ammonia gives 4-amino-2-chlor-5-nitro pyrimidine; by reducing this compound with hydriodic acid and phosphonium iodide, 4-5-diamino-pyrimidine is obtained, which with formic acid furnishes purin; thus:—
NH·CH N:CH N:CH N:CH N:CH
ĊOC̈·NO2→ClĊC-NO2→Cl§ E-No.->Hm-NH.->HEpNH
NH-CO N·CCl N-C-NH2 hi-C-NH2 N-é-N/
Purin crystallizes in microscopic needles, which melt at 216° C. It possesses the properties of both an acid and a base. It is characterized by its ready solubility in water and by its stability towards oxidizing agents.
Oxypurins.—Sarcine or hypoxanthine, C5H4N4O, is 6-oxypurin. It is found in many animal liquids and organs and in the seeds of many plants, and was discovered by J. Scherer in milk (Ann. 1850, 73, p. 328) and by A. Strecker in muscle. It crystallizes in needles which decompose at 150° C. It was synthesized by E. Fischer (Ber., 1897, 30, p. 2228) by heating 2·6·8-trichlorpurin with aqueous caustic potash, and reducing the dichlorhypoxanthine so obtained by hydriodic acid. Its aqueous solution shows acid properties, decomposing carbonates. It also forms a hydrochloride, C5H4N4O·HCl·H2O. W en oxidized by hydrochloric acid and potassium chlorate it yields alloxan and urea, whilst with potassium permanganate it gives oxalic acid.
3-Methyihypoxanthine was synthesized by W. Traube and F. Winter (Arch. Pharm., 1906, 244, p. 11), whilst 8-oxypurin was obtained by E. Fischer and L. Ach in 1897 (Ber., 30, p. 2213), and by O. Isay (Ber., 1906, 39, p. 251).
Xanthine, C5H4N4O2, or 2·6-dioxypurin, was discovered in 1817 by Marcet in a urinary calculus; it also occurs in various animal organs (the liver, pancreas and muscular tissue), in urine, and in beetroot juice. It may be prepared by boiling nuclein with water (A. Kossel, Zeit. physiol. Chem., 1880, 4, . 290); by the decomposition of guanine with nitrous acid (A. Strecker, Ann., 1858, 108, p. 141); and by heating the formyl derivative of 4·5-diamino-2·6-di0xypyrimidine to 120° C. (W. Traube, Ber., 1900, 33, p. 3035). This pyrimidine is prepared from cyanacetyl urea, which on treatment with a concentrated solution oiy sodium hydroxide is converted into 4-amino-2·6-dioxypyrimidine. The isonitroso derivative of this compound is then reduced by ammonium sulphide to 4·5-diamino-2·6-dioxypyrimidine, the formyl derivative of which, on heating passes into xanthine.
CO·CH2 CO-CH2 CO-C:NOH CO-C-NH2 CO-C~NH
| | | |
N-9NH =N H-eNHc=NHeNHc-NH, +NH -N/
CO-NH. Co-NH co-NH co-NH CO—NH
It decomposes when heated, giving ammonia, carbon dioxide and hydroc anic acid. It possesses both acid and basic properties. When heated with concentrated hydrochloric acid to 220° C, it decomposes into carbon dioxide, ammonia, glycine and formic acid. Potassium chlorate and hydrochloric acid oxidize it to alloxan and urea. Methylation of its lead salt gives theobromine.
The isomeric 6·8-dioxypurin was prepared by E. Fischer and L. Ach (loc. cit).
1-Methylxanthine was found in urine by M. Krüger and G. Salomon (Zeit. physiol. Chem., 1897, 24, p. 364); 3-methylxanthine was obtained by E. Fischer and F. Ach, (Ber., 1898, 30, 1980) from 3-methyl uric
