When one thinks of Europe’s medieval period, one imagines feudal lords, knights, and peasants living in squalor. Few consider the great artistic and literary treasures of the time, like this Hebrew Bible, brimming with beautiful artwork and rich literary information that Sotheby's New York recently auctioned.
The 700-year-old Shem Tov Bible had been estimated at US$5 million, with the auctioneer opening the sale at US$4 million. There was a brief bidding war at the start, with at least two in-room bidders fighting for the lone lot. Eventually, once the lot hit the US$5 million mark, it became a battle on the phones, with three separate phone bidders fighting for the lot. Eventually, Global Head of the Books & Manuscripts Department Richard Austin won the lot for his client, with the paddle number 13 for US$5.8 million. With fees, it sold for a total of US$6.9 million.
The manuscript has had a long journey to reach the auction floor, having started in Spain before traveling across the Mediterranean and Europe, including to the eminent collectors David Solomon Sassoon and Jacqui Safra. Additionally, the last time this lot was on the auction floor, it sold for US$825,000, a record-breaking amount at the time.
Lot 1⏐Rabbi Shem Tov ben Abraham Ibn Gaon (1283 - 1330)⏐The Shem Tov Bible, Soria (Castile)⏐Tan leather binding
Circa 1312
Dimensions: 34.2 x 25.3 cm
Pages: 768
Provenance:
- Ibn Gaon (1283-1330)
- Nasi Sar Shalom ben Phinehas (14th Century)
- Stayed in the Middle East for several centuries due to its usage in a legal opinion by Rabbi David Ben Solomon Ibn Abi Zimra (1479 - 1573) a Spanish Jew who worked in The Levant and Egypt. It may have also been used in Syria as scrolls found in Damascus reference the work
- Moved to North Africa during the 17th century and was held by a family who kept it as an important heirloom in Tunis, then under Ottoman rule
- Held by the Serour family in Tripoli during Ottoman rule
- 1909, purchased By David Solomon Sasson (1880-1942) in Tripoli for £85
- Sold by Sotheby’s New York in December 1984 for US$825,000
- Exhibited in Amsterdam (1990), Berlin (1992), New York (1992), and Dallas (1992)
- Acquired by private Swiss collector Jacqui Safra in 1994
Estimate: US$5,000,000 - 7,000,000
Hammer Price: US$5,800,000
Sold: US$6,900,000
Auction House: Sotheby’s New York
Sale: The Shem Tove Bible: A Masterpiece From the Golden Age of Spain
Date: 10 September 2024
Rabbi Shem Tov ben Abraham Ben Gaon, better known as Ibn Gaon, was born in 1283 in Soria, in the Kingdom of Castille, a town with a large Jewish population. In his youth, Ibn Gaon traveled to Barcelona and Tudela to study and write on Jewish laws.
During this flurry of academic endeavors, Ibn Gaon began writing his most challenging and ambitious project on this version of the Hebrew Bible. Throughout its writing, the Shem Tov Bible’s various hues of ink indicate it was written over several years, with the lot info stating it was finished in 1312 in Ibn Gaon’s hometown of Soria.
Ibn Gaon's home region of Soria, located in Northern Spain
A section of the Shem Tov Bible, with its intricate page design influenced by the array of cultures found in the Iberian Peninsula
In 1315, Ibn Gaon left Castille to move to the Levant, then under the rule of the Mamluk Sultanate. Ibn Gaon passed away in 1330, but the work stayed in the region, with it being cited in legal rulings both in Egypt and Syria, possibly moving between the two regions. Eventually, it would be moved to North Africa, ending up in Tripoli by the early 20th century.
Various collectors unsuccessfully tried to acquire the manuscript, until David Solomon Sassoon (1880-1942), a collector of Hebrew manuscripts, purchased the work for £85 in 1909. Sassoon would have the manuscript’s binding repaired, and it would enter his collection of over 500 works.
After Sassoon's death, it was sold by Sotheby’s New York in December 1984 for what was a record-breaking US$825,000. It was then displayed at several exhibits before being sold to another Jewish manuscript collector, Jacqui Safra, for an unknown amount. Jacqui is a descendant of the prominent Safra banking and is a billionaire investment banker operating out of Geneva.
A photograph of David Solomon Sassoon the prominent collector of Hebrew texts, including this lot and the Codex Sassoon
The Safra banking family was from Syria but had their breakthrough in Beirut, Lebanon. The family patriarch Jacob Safra opened his first bank there in 1920 and took advantage of the collapse of the Ottoman Empire to expand their services and presence across the Middle East.
Jacqui Safra is the 3rd generation of Safra bankers, with him working at their American bank. Safra has been involved in various real estate investments in Ireland, movie production, and owning the Encylopedia Britannica. However, most important to this lot is that Safra, like Sassoon, is a high-caliber collector of historical Jewish texts.
Interestingly, Safra bought another Old Sassoon work, the Codex Sassoon. Named after its most famed owner, the 792-page work was also sold by Sotheby's New York. It went for a record-breaking price for any manuscript sold at auction in May 2023.
Jacqui Safra the seller of the Shem Tov Bible
A sample page of the Shem Tov Bible which is a reference to the vaunted Hilleli Codex on p. 279
Academically, this Hebrew Bible is vital as it draws from the Hilleli Codex. Written around 600 AD, the Hilleli Codex was one of the most accurate versions of the original Hebrew Bible before being lost. The Shem Tov Bible often cites the Hilleli Codex, making it an important link to the lost text.
Further academic choices make the Shem Tov Bible incredibly interesting. In the work, it is clear that Ibn Gaon drew from a variety of scholars. Ibn Gaon’s most fascinating source was his choice of prioritizing the Babylonian interpretation of Jewish law and practice over “Western” sources.
An example of the Babylonian influence in the work is seen through this text copied Sefer tagei (Book of Crownlets), Ibn Gaon’s addition of it in this letter form has generally been lost to time
Stylistically, the work is highly representative of the culture and nature of medieval Iberia. Large parts of the peninsula had been under Muslim control; as such, Islamic artistic influence can be seen through the usage of elements such as horseshoe arches at the tops of pages, a common sight in Moorish architecture in Spain.
Additionally, it is believed that either the artist for the work was in close contact with Ibn Gaon, or Ibn Gaon himself was the artist. This is because the illustrations found in the manuscript almost always align with what is being written in the text next to the artwork. For example, on p.99, when a reptile is mentioned, an ouroboros (a snake eating its tail) can be seen.
The three horseshoe arches on p.760 these arches were commonly found in Islamic-Moorish architecture in Spain
A selection of texts with their accompanying illustrations, any of which are tied together or are referential in the religious context