Check out the Codex Sassoon. It's the oldest, most complete Hebrew bible, and it's set to be sold by Sotheby's for $30 to $50 million.

Lakshmi VaranasiFeb 17, 2023, 06:11 IST

The Codex Sassoon is the oldest nearly complete Hebrew bible. It'll be auctioned by Sotheby's in May for somewhere between $30 to $50 million.Sotheby’s

The Codex Sassoon is the oldest, most complete Hebrew bible, according to Sotheby's.
The bible will go on auction in May for somewhere between $30 to $50 million.

A more than 1,000 year-old copy of the Hebrew bible will be put up for auction by Sotheby's in May for somewhere between $30 to $50 million.

ED JONES / Contributor/Getty Images

It's known as the Codex Sassoon — named after its former owner, David Solomon Sassoon, a collector who amassed a significant collection of Judaica and Hebraica manuscripts in the 20th century.

ED JONES / Contributor/Getty Images

It's known as the Codex Sassoon — named after its former owner, David Solomon Sassoon, a collector who amassed a significant collection of Judaica and Hebraica manuscripts in the 20th century.

The Codex Sassoon is one of two surviving codices dating back to the tenth century that can be considered an "almost complete" Hebrew bible, according to Sotheby's.

Roy Rochlin / Contributor/Getty Images

When sold, the Codex Sassoon will be "the most valuable printed manuscript or historical document by estimate ever offered at auction," Sotheby's contends. In 2021, the auction house sold the first printing of the US Constitution for a record $43 million.

Roy Rochlin / Contributor/Getty Images

When sold, the Codex Sassoon will be "the most valuable printed manuscript or historical document by estimate ever offered at auction," Sotheby's contends. In 2021, the auction house sold the first printing of the US Constitution for a record $43 million.

After it was written, the manuscript circled through a few different hands, before winding up a synagogue in northeast Syria, Sotheby's noted.

Sotheby’s

When the synagogue was destroyed — perhaps by the Mongols — in the thirteenth or fourteenth century, the Codex Sassoon went missing, only to officially resurface in 1929, when it was acquired by David Sassoon, Sotheby's noted.

The Codex Sassoon is the oldest nearly complete Hebrew bible. It'll be auctioned by Sotheby's in May for somewhere between $30 to $50 million.Sotheby’s

When the synagogue was destroyed — perhaps by the Mongols — in the thirteenth or fourteenth century, the Codex Sassoon went missing, only to officially resurface in 1929, when it was acquired by David Sassoon, Sotheby's noted.

Sotheby's said "its survival adds yet another layer of mystery and wonder to this rare Hebrew Bible."

Sotheby’s

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Check out the Codex Sassoon. It's the oldest, most complete Hebrew bible, and it's set to be sold by Sotheby's for $30 to $50 million.

A more than 1,000 year-old copy of the Hebrew bible will be put up for auction by Sotheby's in May for somewhere between $30 to $50 million.

It's known as the Codex Sassoon — named after its former owner, David Solomon Sassoon, a collector who amassed a significant collection of Judaica and Hebraica manuscripts in the 20th century.

The Codex Sassoon is one of two surviving codices dating back to the tenth century that can be considered an "almost complete" Hebrew bible, according to Sotheby's.

When sold, the Codex Sassoon will be "the most valuable printed manuscript or historical document by estimate ever offered at auction," Sotheby's contends. In 2021, the auction house sold the first printing of the US Constitution for a record $43 million.

After it was written, the manuscript circled through a few different hands, before winding up a synagogue in northeast Syria, Sotheby's noted.

When the synagogue was destroyed — perhaps by the Mongols — in the thirteenth or fourteenth century, the Codex Sassoon went missing, only to officially resurface in 1929, when it was acquired by David Sassoon, Sotheby's noted.

Sotheby's said "its survival adds yet another layer of mystery and wonder to this rare Hebrew Bible."