Oldest siddur in the world to be displayed in Jerusalem

The 1,200-year-old siddur, to be displayed in the museum’s “Book of Books” exhibition, is around 50 pages long, written in Hebrew and still in its original binding.

By FELICITY KAY
World's oldest siddur. (photo credit: GREEN FAMILY COLLECTION/ARDON BAR HAMA)
World's oldest siddur.
(photo credit: GREEN FAMILY COLLECTION/ARDON BAR HAMA)
Jerusalem’s Bible Lands Museum is to host the unveiling of the oldest known siddur in existence.
The 1,200-year-old siddur, to be displayed in the museum’s “Book of Books” exhibition, is around 50 pages long, written in Hebrew and still in its original binding.
Carbon-testing of the siddur dates it to the 9th century CE, a period of importance in Jewish history.
The display will showcase rare fragments from the Cairo Geniza, as well as original pages from the Gutenberg Bible. It will be on display until the exhibition’s close after Succot in October.
Amanda Weiss, executive director of the museum, expressed her excitement for the unveiling, calling the siddur a “real treasure”: “We are honored to provide our visitors the privilege to see in person the ancient prayer book during the final month of the exhibition.”
The siddur is to be presented by Steve Green, the museum’s chairman, to MK Yuli Edelstein, speaker of the knesset, and Father Gabriel Nadaf, a Nazareth-based Greek Orthodox priest working to foster closer ties between Israel’s Jewish and Christian communities.
The prayer book will be on display to the public from today in the Bible Lands Museum’s “Book of Books” exhibition.
For more info visit www.blmj.org/en.