One need only consult the prefaces of English Bibles to verify the importance of the Masoretic Text (MT). It is no exaggeration to say that the Hebrew Masoretic Text is the most important form of the Old Testament text in existence in the modern world. The fact that the only version of the Hebrew Bible that survived the ancient period is found in this Masoretic Text has weighed heavily on the minds of Christian Bible translators at least since the time of St. For Christians, too, it is obvious that the Hebrew Bible represents the books of that part of their Bible that they call the Old Testament in their original languages (mostly Hebrew, some Aramaic). It is the accepted form of the Bible in contemporary Jewish communities. Medieval manuscripts like the Aleppo, Leningrad or Sassoon Codices are key exemplars of what is called the Masoretic Text, curated by early medieval scholars called the Masoretes. The Hebrew Bible as represented by manuscripts such as the Codex Sassoon is a very important part of the story of how that English Bible got into our hands. (Photo by Jack Guez / AFP via Getty Images) The Masoretic Text of the Hebrew Bible The physicality of old biblical manuscripts is a way for people to feel more connected to the chain of transmission that gave them the English Bible in their hands.Ī page of the Codex Sassoon. An English translation of what? Readers are aware that a very long space of time separates them from the world of the biblical authors. Anyone who wants a copy of the Bible can go to their local bookseller, second-hand bookshop, or online store and be fairly certain to find one.īut what is “the Bible” that most people own? In Australia it is almost certainly a copy of one of the myriad English translations. For some it is a mere relic of the past, for others it is a great work of literature for some an authoritative religious book, for yet others the very words of God. Even if no longer in everyone’s homes in Australia, the Bible remains ubiquitous. It is therefore a premier witness to the form of the Hebrew Bible as it had come together under the curation of scholars of the preceding centuries, who standardised the notation of vowels, punctuation, and so on.Ī deeper reason for public fascination with such a venerable artifact relates to the importance of the Bible in world culture. Unlike another highly valued early Bible of around the same age, the Aleppo Codex, which is missing about a third of its pages - including all of my favourite book, Daniel - the Codex Sassoon is only completely missing a few pages from the beginning of the first book of the Bible, Genesis. It is older than our oldest complete copy of the Hebrew Bible, the Leningrad Codex (1008 CE) by about a century - the exact date of Codex Sassoon is not known, but is usually given as late-ninth or tenth century CE. One answer relates to the status of this codex as a witness to the Hebrew Bible as a complete book, bound together in one volume. What is it about this document that means people are willing to pay such a hefty sum? This is one of the highest prices ever paid for any book. Moses, and donated to the ANU Museum of the Jewish People in Tel Aviv, Israel, where it will be on public display. The Codex Sassoon was purchased by former US ambassador to Romania, Alfred H. Last week a copy of the Hebrew Bible sold at the Sotheby’s auction house in New York for US$38 million.
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