manuscripts
In 2018 we received an interesting message from a private collector in New York
With a photo of a "rare" manuscript he wanted to purchase from an anonymous seller in Turkey
The manuscript was described as an ancient Bible, 700 years old ! and the price tag was over $ 40,000
I started laughing, this item is not antique, not Bible, and not worth more than $ 10
In the last few years there has been a lot of fake Judaica coming from Arab countries,
Most of the fakes are bad , And almost everyone who reads Hebrew can understand that it is fake, the words are random letters in Hebrew, in a bright gold color with lots of drawings, especially of the menorah and Star of David
But other than fakes, there are sometimes interesting surprises
In the picture you can see a small piece of parchment that we received for testing by one of the collectors who contacted us, it is not in perfect condition, but it is a very rare piece
From the Book of Jeremiah, 15th-14th century
More than 600 years old!
Want to know how to check that you have an ancient manuscript?
Here are some tips
What material is the manuscript made of? parchment or paper?
If it is paper, Pick up the paper carefully next to a lamp, most of the old paper has watermarks
In the photo, a watermark from an ancient manuscript, 1500-1530 AD, France (from the gallery collection)
If the manuscript is written in Hebrew, look at the shape of the letters
Ancient manuscripts have tiny changes in the shapes of the letters, the two main letters that have changed over the years are the letters ק and the letter ש
In the photo, a manuscript of the Mishnah, 16th century, Yemen
Want to read more?