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A holy book -

The Codex Sassoon is believed to be the very first codex, or manuscript in book form, of the Hebrew Bible.

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The foundation of the Abrahamic faiths -

The Hebrew Bible is the foundation of the three Abrahamic faiths: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.

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Oral tradition -

In antiquity, the Jewish people came to rely on oral tradition, which was passed down through generations to understand and preserve the message of the Bible.

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The Dead Sea Scrolls -

But then came the scrolls. In the centuries prior to the writing of the Codex, there were only sections of biblical texts in scroll form. These came to be known as the Dead Sea Scrolls.

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Simple texts -

However, these scrolls contained no verses, chapters, or punctuation.

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Transition -

It wasn’t until the early Middle Ages that scholars known as the Masoretes began to create a body of notes that standardized the text of the Hebrew Bible.

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The Aleppo Codex -

One of the most well-known books to emerge from this project was the Aleppo Codex, assembled circa 930 CE.

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The Aleppo Codex -

Sadly, today fewer than 300 of the approximately 487 original folios of the Aleppo Codex survive.

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The Leningrad Codex -

Another famous manuscript is the later Leningrad Codex, which dates back to 1008 CE.

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The most complete copy -

However, the Codex Sassoon is the earliest, most complete copy of the Hebrew Bible.

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Centuries-old annotations and inscriptions -

The historical significance of the codex is not just the printed material, but the handwritten annotations and inscriptions.

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Historical notes -

These annotations from the 11th and 13th centuries, from around present-day Israel and Syria, hint at the epic journey the Codex has taken.

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Almost complete -

Missing only 12 leaves, the Codex Sassoon still contains all 24 books of the Hebrew Bible.

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A heavy Bible -

Protected in a simple brown leather binding added during the 20th century, the book weighs 26 pounds (11 kg).

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In the hands of many -

It was owned by private individuals for several centuries before it was donated to the Makisin synagogue in northeastern Syria in the 13th century.

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It was kept safe -

The synagogue was destroyed sometime around the late 14th century. Luckily, the Bible was safeguarded by a community member who was required to return it once the synagogue was rebuilt.

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It disappeared -

However, the synagogue was never reconstructed, and the Codex disappeared for several years.

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Once it resurfaced... -

It resurfaced in 1929 and was offered for sale to David Solomon Sassoon, a scholar who had an impressive collection of Hebrew manuscripts.

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Its name -

Sassoon purchased the Bible, and affixed his bookplate to the inside cover of the binding. It was later named the Codex Sassoon after him.

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It was kept privately for many years -

Though known to scholars in the 20th century, the book stayed under private ownership for several decades.

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The Codex Sassoon for sale -

The historic Bible was owned by Sassoon's descendants until 1978, when they sold it to the British Rail Pension Fund through Sotheby's Zurich.

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Its first public exhibition -

The Codex Sassoon was first exhibited publicly in 1982 at the British Museum in London. It took many years until it appeared in another exhibition.

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The Codex Sassoon for sale -

It was auctioned again through Sotheby's on December 5, 1989, to a dealer. It was then sold to investor Jacqui Safra that same year.

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Back in the public eye -

Prior to its historic 2023 auction, the Codex Sassoon was exhibited for the first time since 1982. And this time it was around the world.

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The world tour -

The Codex Sassoon was on display in London, Tel Aviv, Dallas, Los Angeles, and New York.

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The auction -

It was sold at Sotheby's in New York in May 2023, for US$38.1 million, making it the fourth most expensive book and manuscript ever sold.

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The buyer -

Alfred H. Moses, American attorney and diplomat, purchased the Hebrew Bible as a gift to the ANU Museum of the Jewish People in Tel Aviv.

Sources: (Sotheby's) (CNN) (CBS News) 

See also: Could these be the lost books of the Bible?

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