ALBAWABA - A very rare piece of history, an ancient Egyptian version of the Bible, might be on its way to making waves in the world of antiquities. Christie's International Auctions House has announced it will be auctioning off a rare manuscript dating from 250 to 350 AD. It's written on papyrus and is hailed as the oldest Egyptian copy of the Bible out there.
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This rare find is set to be auctioned in London this coming June and is expected to be sold off for around $4 million. Eugenio Donadoni, a leading expert in medieval and Renaissance manuscripts at Christie's, shares that this manuscript includes the oldest known texts from two books of the Bible. The texts covered are "The First Epistle of Peter" and "The Book of Jonah."
Donadoni also explains that this copy was penned over 40 years within a monastery in Upper Egypt. Today, it is carefully preserved behind plexiglass, ensuring its protection. The journey of this manuscript to the auction block is as fascinating as its contents.
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It was unearthed in Egypt during the 1950s and initially became part of the American University of Mississippi's collection until 1981. Following this, it entered the hands of Dr. Martin Schoen, a Norwegian collector of manuscripts.
The auction is a big chance for people who collect old things and historians to get a piece of history that is important for both religion and Egyptian culture. As the auction date comes closer, anticipation is only going to build up for this historic sale of this Bible.
