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What Is The Oldest Hebrew Bible - Biblical Archaeology Society PDF
What Is The Oldest Hebrew Bible - Biblical Archaeology Society PDF
The formation of the Hebrew Bible from the Dead Sea Scrolls to the Aleppo Codex
Jennifer Drummond 12/16/2016 (12/16/2016T21:00)
The Aleppo Codex, the oldest Hebrew Bible that has survived to modern times, was created by
scribes called Masoretes in Tiberias, Israel around 930 C.E. As such, the Aleppo Codex is
considered to be the most authoritative copy of the Hebrew Bible. The Aleppo Codex is not
complete, however, as almost 200 pages went missing between 1947 and 1957.
Interested in the history and meaning of the Dead Sea Scrolls? In the free eBook Dead Sea
Scrolls, learn what the Dead Sea Scrolls are and why are they important. Find out what they
tell us about the Bible, Christianity and Judaism.
While the Aleppo Codex is the oldest Hebrew Bible, the Leningrad Codex is the oldest complete
Hebrew Bible. The Leningrad Codex dates to 1008 C.E. The scribe who penned the Leningrad
Codex actually identified himself in two colophons (an inscription containing the title, the
scribes or printers name, and the date and place of composition) at the beginning and end of the
text as Samuel ben Jacob, or Samuel son of Jacob. The colophons also identify the place written
(Cairo), the person who commissioned it (Mevorak son of Nathaniel) as well as further sale and
donation details.
The Ashkar-Gilson Manuscript was purchased by Fuad Ashkar and Albert Gilson (hence the
name Ashkar-Gilson) from an antiquities dealer in Beirut, Lebanon in 1972, and some years
later, they donated it to Duke University in North Carolina. Based on carbon-14 dating and
paleographic analysis, the Ashkar-Gilson Manuscript was dated to sometime between the
seventh and eighth centuries C.E., right at the tail end of the so-called silent era an almost
600-year period from the third through eighth centuries, or the time between the oldest Hebrew
Bible fragments (the Dead Sea Scrolls) and the oldest complete Hebrew Bible authoritative
Masoretic codices.
Was the Ashkar-Gilson Manuscipt the source of the later, authoritative Masoretic traditions? For
the answer to this question and more, read the full article Missing Link in Hebrew Bible
Formation by Paul Sanders as it appears in the November/December 2015 issue of BAR.
BAS Library Members: Read the full article Missing Link in Hebrew Bible Formation
by Paul Sanders in the November/December 2015 issue of Biblical Archaeology Review.
Not a BAS Library member yet? Join the BAS Library today.
This Bible History Daily feature was originally published on November 1, 2015.Ed.
More on the Dead Sea Scrolls, the Aleppo Codex and the Leningrad Codex in the BAS Library:
Emmanuel Tov, Seaching for the Original Bible: Do the Dead Sea Scrolls Help?
Biblical Archaeology Review, July/August 2014.
Y osef Ofer, The Mystery of the Missing Pages of the Aleppo Codex, Biblical
Archaeology Review, July/August 2015.
Y osef Ofer, The Shattered Crown: The Aleppo Codex, 60 Years After the Riots,
Biblical Archaeology Review, September/October 2008.
James A. Sanders and Astrid Beck, The Leningrad Codex, Bible Review, August 1997.
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