A Hebrew Bible, believed to be the oldest complete book of its kind, has been sold for $38.1 million at a Sotheby’s auction in New York.
The Bible, known as the Codex Sassoon, is 1 100 years old. It is the oldest copy of the Hebrew Bible which has all 24 books, including punctuation, vowels, and accents. It was named after its previous owner, David Solomon Sassoon, who acquired it in 1929.
It was purchased on behalf of the Tel Aviv-based ANU Museum of the Jewish People by an American lawyer, Alfred Moses. Moses served as the United States Ambassador to Romania in the 1990s.
Moses was quoted as saying: ‘The Hebrew Bible is the most influential in history and constitutes the bedrock of Western civilisation. I rejoice in knowing that it belongs to the Jewish people. It was my mission, realising the historic significance of Codex Sassoon, to see it resides in a place with global access to all people.’
The highest amount paid for a historical document remains the $43.2 million paid for a first-edition copy of the US constitution. This was bought by a hedge fund manager, Ken Griffin, two years ago.
[Photo: Tomer Neuberg/Flash90]