![]() Regrettably, the qualities that make biblical manuscripts remarkable also make them susceptible to exploitation. Think of the love, the veneration, the piety, the sacredness that are here embodied the amount of money spent, the effort expended, and the care with which the finished volumes were prized.” One stands before some of these venerable monuments with feelings not unlike awe immense masses of parchment, the pages ranging from twenty to fifty centimeters in height. They are magnificent in their grandeur, veritable chefs-d’euvre of the scribal art. “One need not be a bookworm to develop enthusiasm for these Bible codices. Upon reflecting over the manuscripts he encountered in the Cairo synagogues, Richard Gottheil wrote: Brian Rickett courtesy, Bodleian Library, Oxford) Bottom: Medieval manuscript with block style writing. Top: Bible manuscript opened to Genesis 1 Masoretic notes are written in micrography around the book title. Their value and remarkable magnetism leave them especially open to exploitation. This is particularly true of biblical manuscripts, which represent the zenith of manuscript production. In an era before the printing press, when everything was done by hand, manuscripts were masterful works of scholarship and craftsmanship. ![]() A Foggy Fate: When Manuscripts Go Missingĭesecration or even outright theft of manuscripts is not unusual. Today, many of these manuscripts are missing or show evidence of having been pilfered by thieves. At that time, referencing a 1905 article published by Richard Gottheil, the team keyed the various manuscripts it documented to Gottheil’s list using his original numbering. The last documented encounter was in 1981 when an Israeli team had processed it for catalogue in microfilm. The whereabouts of Cairo’s crown had been unknown for decades. Brian Rickett courtesy of the Bodleian Library, Oxford) In this manuscript opened to Exodus 1, the Massorah (scribal notations) are woven into images around the book title. This meticulous attention to detail helped assure accurate transmission of the text by preventing the copyist from intentionally or unintentionally standardizing the spelling with a single form that he may prefer. To make sure that the copyist is careful to preserve that difference, the Masorah notes the fact of the difference and records the frequency of these variations. The Hebrew spelling is different in each one of these occurrences. For example, the word “Shiloh” appears in both 1 Samuel 1 and 1 Samuel 2. In the marginal notes of these books, scribes would log data such as minor differences in the spelling of words. In this way, for centuries, scribes maintained what is known as the Masoretic Text – the standardized text that serves as the basis for the Hebrew Bible and the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. These manuscripts were essentially reference books that preserved the authoritative biblical source-text for copyists of the Hebrew Bible. ![]() The term “crown” in the name is translated from either “ keter,” ( כתר) or “ taj,” ( תאג) used variously depending on custom and geographic place of origin. Among those missing was the crown of Cairo, a remarkable 11th century manuscript containing the Ketuvim, or Writings, section of the Bible produced by the scribe Zechariah Ben Anan. ![]() However, decades of complicated Jewish existence in the area had left the whereabouts of many of these uncertain. It was no secret that old and precious manuscripts had once resided in the city’s historic synagogues. Yoram Meital* visited Cairo in 2017 to document the city’s historic synagogues, he knew he might encounter literary remnants of the Jewish community’s once vibrant life. – Psalm 19:7-10 (ESV) The Disappearance of Cairo’s Crown ** More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb. The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple the precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes the fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever the rules of the LORD are true, and righteous altogether. Here, we look at its discovery, subsequent loss, and re-discovery 112 years later. Summary: Part 2 of a 2-part installment on the re-discovery of a Hebrew manuscript from Cairo that has generated excitement over recent months.
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