The Aleppo Codex The Oldest Hebrew Bible Is Written in the Galilee
The Aleppo Codex is the earliest known Hebrew manuscript comprising the full text of the Hebrew Bible. It is also the most accurate and authoritative source document, both for the biblical text and for its vocalization, cantillation, and Masorah, or the unbroken transmission of the oral and written tradition preserving the Holy Scriptures.
The Codex was copied by the scribe Shlomo Ben-Buya'a and subsequently verified and vocalized by Aharon ben Asher in Tiberias in 925 CE. In 1190, Maimonides drew upon the Codex to compile his Mishneh Torah.
It was housed for six centuries in the Central Synagogue in Aleppo, Syria, until the synagogue was torched during anti-Jewish riots in 1947. Only 60% of the manuscript survived. Its whereabouts became unknown until it resurfaced in Jerusalem in 1958. Today, it can be viewed at the Shrine of the Book in the Israel Museum.
Overview
The Aleppo Codex is the oldest known manuscript of the Hebrew Bible.
The Codex was written by Aharon ben Asher in Tiberias in the Galilee in 925 CE.
In 1190, Maimonides worked from this Bible to compile his Mishnah Torah.
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Antisimetism
