The Toledo Museum of Art had been searching for an object that embodied the connectivity of the pre-modern era. The cup calls attention to the largely forgotten Medieval Jewish community of eastern Khorasan, modern-day Afghanistan. The artifact is wide, flat and often mistaken for a bowl, but according to the curators, that was the shape of wine goblets at the time.

This month, the Toledo, Ohio, Museum of Art Acquired a 12th Century Afghan Kiddish Cup for $4 million, a record for a ceremonial object of Judaica. (The previous high was $1.6 million for a Rothschild Torah Ark.)

“The finely crafted silver cup is the oldest of the 25 Medieval Judaica relics left in the world,” said Sharon Liberman Mintz, International Senior Specialist in Judaica at Sotheby’s, the auction house that handled the sale.