Torah pointer, Vienna, 1804. It is considered improper to touch the Torah with one’s hand during the reading of the Torah, so as to not damage the carefully written letters. In the Middle Ages, the parchment was covered with a piece of cloth, which was also used to point to the line being read. There are references of specific items made for this purpose from the sixteenth century onwards. The most common form of a Torah pointer is a hand with an outstretched pointing finger, made of metal, wood, bone, or nowadays even from glass or plastic. This object is traditionally called by its Hebrew name, yad (hand).