TEL AVIV — Nearly 20 months after its arrival in Israel was overshadowed by the October 7 Hamas attack, the world’s oldest near-complete Hebrew Bible — the Codex Sassoon — has finally been unveiled at its permanent home at the ANU – Museum of the Jewish People.
The manuscript, dating back more than 1,000 years to the early 10th century, was scheduled for public display on October 11, 2024. Just days earlier, an El Al flight had delivered the precious artifact from New York. But the planned exhibit was postponed following the Hamas-led assault on southern Israel, in which over 1,200 Israelis were killed and 251 were taken hostage to Gaza.
On Thursday, in a ceremony timed just before the Jewish festival of Shavuot — which commemorates the giving of the Torah — the museum inaugurated the Codex Sassoon as the centerpiece of its collection.
“Today we mark 601 days since October 7 — a day that changed everything,” said ANU CEO Oded Revivi during the event. “This Bible, written some 1,100 years ago, has returned to the heart of the Jewish state. In moments like this, we realize how deeply our identity is rooted in memory and text.”
“The Bible is not just an ancient book — it is the soundtrack of Jewish history,” Revivi added. “It has carried us through suffering and offered words of hope and prayer.”
Ancient Legacy Preserved
The Codex Sassoon comprises 792 pages of parchment bound in a single volume and includes all 24 books of the Hebrew Bible. Paleographic analysis confirms its origin in the early 900s CE, making it one of the oldest and most complete Hebrew Bible manuscripts ever discovered.
Scattered notes throughout the manuscript provide rare historical insight. One Judeo-Arabic inscription documents a transaction — estimated around the year 1000 — in which Khalaf ben Avraham sold the codex to Yitzhak ben Yehezkel al-Attar. Another identifies the manuscript as property of a synagogue in Makisin, likely present-day Markada in Syria.
A final note, dated to the 14th century, recounts the destruction of the synagogue and entrusts the manuscript to a man named Salama ibn Abi al-Fakhr until the house of worship could be rebuilt.
The codex then vanished from the historical record for six centuries before resurfacing in 1929, when it was sold to renowned collector David Solomon Sassoon for £350. In the decades that followed, the manuscript changed hands several times — including ownership by the British Rail Pension Fund and later Swiss banker Jacob (Jacqui) Safra.
In May 2023, the Codex Sassoon made headlines when it was auctioned at Sotheby’s for $38 million. The buyer, Alfred H. Moses — former U.S. ambassador to Romania and president of the American Jewish Committee — donated the manuscript to ANU.
Reflections on Heritage
Israeli President Isaac Herzog shared a video message during the unveiling, highlighting his family’s personal connection to the Sassoon family.
“Flora Sassoon, the matriarch of that family, was one of the few women in the 19th century to lead an economic empire. She was a dear friend to my grandparents and great-grandparents,” Herzog said. “I believe the Sassoons always intended for this Bible to return to the land where the Jewish nation was born.”
Herzog also noted the symbolism of unveiling the Codex during Shavuot: “This is the holiday that celebrates receiving the Torah — the very moment that sparked a millennia-long conversation among the Jewish people. What better time to welcome the Codex Sassoon home?”
From Captivity to Closure
Among those in attendance was Agam Berger, one of the surveillance soldiers kidnapped by Hamas and released during a temporary ceasefire in January 2024. She was accompanied by her mother, Meirav.
In August 2024, while Agam was still in captivity, ANU had hosted a symbolic birthday celebration for her 20th birthday. Unbeknownst to her family, Agam saw the televised event from Gaza — the first glimpse of her mother since her abduction.
“Being here today closes a circle,” said Meirav Berger at the event. “I pray that the remaining 58 hostages will also be reunited with their loved ones soon.”
She added, “The Codex Sassoon is more than a manuscript — it is a testament to the resilience of the Jewish spirit, one that has withstood wars, fires, and persecution. From destruction, we grow anew.”
Visitors at the event were invited to view the Codex, which was opened to the passage featuring the Ten Commandments (Deuteronomy 5:6–21).
Another Sassoon Treasure Arrives in Israel
The Codex Sassoon is not the only significant manuscript tied to the Sassoon family to recently reach Israeli soil.
On Wednesday, the National Library of Israel (NLI) announced that the Shem Tov Bible, an illuminated 14th-century manuscript, will be permanently displayed at its Jerusalem campus. The Bible, crafted by Rabbi Shem Tov ben Abraham Ibn Gaon in early 14th-century Spain, has been loaned to the library by philanthropists Terri and Andrew Herenstein, who acquired it at a 2024 Sotheby’s auction.
Having traveled from Spain to Jerusalem in 1312 and later through North Africa, Baghdad, London, and Geneva, the manuscript now returns to the land where its author intended it to reside.
“This Bible — also known as Sefer HaYashar — stands as a crowning achievement in biblical and kabbalistic scholarship of the medieval period,” said Dr. Chaim Neria, curator of Judaica at NLI. “Its inclusion in our collection significantly enhances research into the Masorah and Jewish artistic traditions, especially those of Spanish Jewry.”
In keeping with Jewish customs of beautifying sacred objects, the Shem Tov Bible features elaborate Gothic and Islamic motifs, including gilded arches, arcades, and illustrations of birds and beasts.
“Receiving this manuscript during Shavuot, a time that marks the giving of the Torah, is especially meaningful,” said NLI Chairman Sallai Meridor. “Having made its long journey through centuries and continents, it is now back where it belongs — in Jerusalem.”
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