Going Dutch for a Trilingual Ketubah

Adding additional languages to a ketubah is a special way to honor your various backgrounds, be inclusive of different sides of your family and make the reading and ritual of the ketubah more accessible, and offer an opportunity to include even more color as well as texture into the ketubah.

I have previously hand-lettered up to four languages side-by-side on a ketubah. This is the first time writing in Dutch, and the first time a couple has requested my interlinear format for three languages. Whenever possible I try to match up lines so that what you read in one line is echoed in the other language underneath. Luckily, for this trilingual ketubah in Hebrew, English, and Dutch, I was able to sync all three languages from start to finish.

This ketubah is written in the ink colors pearlescent Dutch Blue (naturally!), pearlescent Birdwing Copper, and Cool Grey (all made by Daler-Rowney), surrounded with the ’Infinite’ border design, and further decorated with a Hebrew poetic phrase which translates to, “When I go forth to find you, I find you seeking me.”