Israel Museum unveils rare Biblical manuscript from 'silent era'
Manuscript some 1,300 years old, on display at Shrine of the Book after it was discovered in a Cairo synagogue.
By The Associated PressA rare Old Testament manuscript some 1,300 years old is finally on display for the first time, after making its way from a secret room in a Cairo synagogue to the hands of an American collector.
The manuscript, containing the Song of the Sea section of the Old Testament's Book of Exodus and dating to around the 7th century A.D., comes from what scholars call the silent era - a span of 600 years between the third and eighth centuries from which almost no Hebrew manuscripts survive, and is now on public display for the first time, at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem.
"[The manuscript] comes from a period of almost darkness in terms of Hebrew manuscripts," said Stephen Pfann, a textual scholar at the University of the Holy Land in Jerusalem.
"Scholars have long noted the lack of original biblical manuscripts written between the time of the Dead Sea Scrolls, the latest of which come from the third century, to texts written in the ninth and 10th centuries," Pfann said.
"Scholars can only piece together scraps of information on the period using translations into Greek and other languages," he said, "so to have a piece of the original text from this period is quite remarkable."
The parchment is believed to have been left in the Cairo Genizah, a vast depository of medieval Jewish manuscripts discovered in the late 1800s in a previously unknown room at Cairo's ancient Ben Ezra Synagogue. It was in private hands until the late 1970s, when its Lebanese-born American owner turned it over to the Rare Books, Manuscripts, and Special Collections Library at Duke University.
The manuscript is now on extended loan to the Israel Museum and is on display in the museum's Shrine of the Book, which also houses the Dead Sea Scrolls.
Why Facebook Connect?
Comment on Haaretz.com articles with your Facebook login, and share your thoughts on your own wall.
- Latest
- Most Viewed
- Most Rated
- Open all
Actually, the Song at the Sea, which we recite each Shabbos and Yom Tov, was sung by the men. Miriam lead the women in a different song, as reported in the Torah.
Those 600 years saw the rise of Christianity as a power. Most likely Jewish manuscripts from that time were mostly destroyed.
You echo my first response to the article. You just posted before me!
I almost forgot! The proper name for the region is not Palestine. Palestine is a colonial term first imposed on the area by the Romans. Before the Roman occupation, there was no Palestine.
Did you know that there is archeological evidence collaborating the exodus from Egypt as detailed in the Torah? Most historians overlook it because they falsely believe that the proper time period was the reign of Ramses II. In fact the exodus took place many centuries before. Did you know that there is ample evidence of Jews living in Eretz Yisroel during biblical times? I've seen it myself!
Very perceptive of you to see that my comments were "tongue in cheek". I guess bbl stands for barrel, like in barrel of fun?
The Song of the Sea was sung by Miriam, Moses's sister, after the Egyptians were thwarted in their plan to recapture the Israelites. They were on their way to the land promised by G-d to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and to their descendents. The land was holy then and it is holy now. The manuscript may be from the "silent era", but it recounts a part of the Bible that was known to the Jews since it's writing by Moses. The Dead Sea Scrolls prove that the sacred stories of the Jewish People have been told and retold for thousands of years before the Muslims conquered the area by force. By the way, you don't need to put Dr. in quotation marks. I'm a Chiropractor and I am referred to as Doctor both professionally and socially.
Were there no manuscripts written? Were those that were produced, destroyed ,perhaps, by Christians/Muslims? Were they simply lost? Are there more stored in the genizah at Cairo?
My 'doctor' thesis marches on. 'Dr.' Barry writes: 'Does this mean that Jews were in the Holy Land before the Muslim invasion? ' Actually,the manuscript comes from Egypt. Nothing in the article indicates that it was ever in 'the Holy Land.'
"In fact, it is more likely that Jews did not come from Egypt but rather are part of the Caanite tribes of Palestine." It's not terribly important whether the Israelites spent time in Egypt. However, it is worth noting, for the sake of logic, that the lack of evidence for one theory doesn't make some other theory (also lacking in similar evidence) more likely. Although, I agree that the evidence we do have, that being genetics and archeology, clearly show Jews to be a people with origins and an extensive history in the Middle East.
Has Haaretz become a Christian newspaper? The Jewish Bible (Tanakh in Hebrew) has never been called the "Old Testament" except by Christians. The term "Old Testament" refers to Christian translations of the Hebrew Bible into other languages. The reason the Christians call it the "Old Testament" is because they have another book called the New Testament, which was originally written in Greek, not Hebrew.
We're not talking about the time of Moses, we're talking about periods after the Romans squashed the Jew's state in the first Century CE. Roman historians wrote about the Jews in Israel. There is that whole thing with Jesus. You've heard of him I assume? Jews and Israel are also referenced in the Koran. Which predates the time of this newly displayed text. I can only assume your comments were meant to be tongue in cheek.
It's probably fair to say that the larger part of what became the Israelites during the period of the Judges and first kingdom of David and solomon etc. were descended from a mixture of migratory Hebrews and native Canaanites who were conquered, but there was definitely a core of Hebrews (Habirus, foreigners in Egypt probably loosely related to Semites like the Hyksos) who formed the military leadership. The word Moses is itself Egyptian.
The earliest reference to Israel is from the Egyptian Pharaoh Merneptah in 1209 B.C. It is on a funeral stela now in the Cairo Museum. The earliest Hebrew inscription is the Geza Calendar from 1000 B.C. As this archaeological record suggests, the Jewish People are one of the oldest peoples in the world.
Does this mean that Jews were in the Holy Land before the Muslim invasion? If it does, then what happens to Haaretz's claim that the Jews are "occupying" Muslim land????
Did you know that there is absolutely no proof that jews existed in the time of egypt in large numbers as slaves? Interesting huh? There is not historical evidence (although there is for other ethinic groups) that jews actually lived in Israel during biblical times. In fact, it is more likely that Jews did not come from Egypt but rather are part of the Caanite tribes of Palestine.
That is amazing!