Record price for Codex Sassoon

Exactly four minutes. That's how quickly the auction hammer fell for the Codex Sassoon. Not surprising when you consider that this is the oldest and most complete religious manuscript in the world. And of course the price of this 'Auction gem' reflects that.  

Sotheby's states that it is one of the most influential books in human history. The Codex Sassoon consists of 792 pages and has long been one of the cornerstones of civilizations and communities around the world. The 30,5 cm by 35,5 cm large, twelve-kilo book from the beginning of the tenth century is missing only twelve pages. This makes it the oldest and most complete Hebrew Bible in the world. 

The manuscript consists of a total of the 24 books of the Torah, Neviim and Ketuvim. Together they form the Tanakh. 

Freely accessible to the public

The Codex Sassoon was eventually purchased by Ambassador Alfred H. Moses on behalf of the organization American Friends of ANU. The book will therefore not gather dust in a private collection, but will remain freely accessible to the general public. The holy book will now adorn the collection of the ANU Museum of the Jewish People in Tel Aviv. 

The Hebrew Bible raised €35 ​​million in New York. This record price exceeds the amount of the sale of Leonardo Da Vinci's Codex Leicester, which went under the hammer in 1994 for approximately €28.6 million.