Life imitating art: Amazing spectacle of traditional Orthodox Jewish wedding that looks more like an Old Master's painting




Steeped in tradition, these amazing images show an ultra-Orthodox Jewish wedding in Israel.

With a floor-to-ceiling veil separating men from women, hundreds of well-wishers dressed all in black and wearing traditional shtreimel hats in Petah Tikva, six miles east of Tel Aviv.

The room was packed for the wedding between Nechama Paarel Horowitz and Chananya Yom Tov Lipa - the great-grandson of a rabbi of the Vizhnitz Hasidic sect.

Ceremony: Bride Nechama Paarel Horowitz fulfils the Mitvah tantz - where family members and honoured rabbi dance in front of her and the groom Tradition: Orthodox Jewish men, many wearing furry shtreimel hats, take part in a wedding ceremony in Petah Tikva, Israel

Segregated: A gauze veil keeps the men and women apart during the traditional service

It was so full that some guests were forced to use binoculars to catch a glimpse of the service.

As other women watched from behind the gauze curtain, the bride took part in the Mitvah tantz ritual - where members of the family and honoured rabbis dance in front of her and then with the groom.

Members of the congregation held hands and danced during the ceremony and sweets were handed out to children before the wedding party enjoyed a traditional meal.

The Vizhnitz sect was formed by Menachem Mendel Hager of Kosov in the 1800s in Vyzhnytsia, Bukovina, Austria-Hungary - now the Ukraine.



Vizhnitz is one of several major Hasidic sects, with others including Breslov, Lubavitch (Chabad), Satmar, Boston and Spinka.

The different communities can usually be identified by their particular clothing, such as their hats or socks.

Up close: One man uses binoculars to catch a glimpse of the ceremony as the service was packed with well-wishers

Well-wishers: Hundreds of members of the Vizhnitz Hasidic sect attended the marriage

The bride and groom stood under a traditional wedding stage - or chuppah - during the outdoor ceremony

Hasidic Jews wear clothes similar to that worn by their ancestors in 18th and 19th century Europe - and this style of attire also helps them to focus on their sense of tradition and spirituality.



The biggest Hasidic communities are found in Israel and the U.S. There also smaller groups in Canada, England, Belgium and Australia.



Their lives revolve around religious study, prayer and family - and theirs is a world without television, films, the internet or secular publications.



The men generally have beards and sidelocks (peyot).



Women tend to wear long skirts and shirts with long sleeves and high necklines as they adhere to strict guidelines of modesty.



After the women get married, they cover their heads with either scarves, hats or wigs (known as 'sheitels').

Celebration: An ultra-orthodox Jewish man raises his arms after distributing sweets to children at the service and, right, the bride enters the men's section to complete the traditional Mitzvah tantz ritual



Rituals: The bride covers her face as a rabbi dances in front of her during the Mitzvah tantz Laws: Jewish women are visible on the other side of a floor-to-ceiling partition Tuck in: Men at a table holding cakes and desert sweets at the wedding in Petah Tikva last night

Wedding feast: A man sits down to eat at the corner of a giant trestle table covered with food next to a huge wedding tent