Parochet (also paroches, parokhet) is the curtain on the front of the Aron Kodesh (Torah Ark) in a synagogue

Synagogue

A synagogue is a Jewish house of prayer. This use of the Greek term synagogue originates in the Septuagint where it sometimes translates the Hebrew word for assembly, kahal...

 that covers the Sifrei Torah (Torah scrolls). In most cases, behind the parochet is also a door.

This curtain represents the covering that was on the original Ark of the Covenant

Ark of the Covenant

The Ark of the Covenant , also known as the Ark of the Testimony, is a chest described in Book of Exodus as solely containing the Tablets of Stone on which the Ten Commandments were inscribed...

.

It is customary in many synagogues to change the parochet to a different set (normally white) during the High Holy Days

High Holy Days

The High Holidays or High Holy Days, in Judaism, more properly known as the Yamim Noraim , may mean:#strictly, the holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur ;...

.

The term parochet is used in the Bible to describe the curtain that separated the Kodesh Hakodashim (Holy of Holies) from the main hall of the Temple in Jerusalem

Temple in Jerusalem

The Temple in Jerusalem or Holy Temple , refers to one of a series of structures which were historically located on the Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem, the current site of the Dome of the Rock. Historically, these successive temples stood at this location and functioned as the centre of...

. Its use in synagogues is a reference to the centrality of the Temple to Jewish worship.

Several of the prohibited Shabbos activities

39 categories of activity prohibited on Shabbat

The commandment to keep Shabbat as a day of rest is repeated many times in the Tanakh, the Hebrew Bible. The commandment is usually expressed in English in terms of refraining from the doing of work on Shabbat, but the Hebrew term used in the Bible is melakha , which has a slightly different...

 derive from the manufacture and repair of the original parochet.

The parochet used in the Temple was made from wool and linen, and was exempt from the laws of Shatnez

Shatnez

Shatnez is the prohibition in Jewish law derived from the Torah that prohibits the wearing of a fabric containing both wool and linen ; this forbidden mixture is referred to in Judaism as shatnez...

, which apply only to clothing worn on the body, not to furnishings in a building.