Image Details

A Private New York Collection

BIRDS OF A FEATHER. The London Manuscript (shown here) and the Ashkar-Gilson Manuscript are both pieces of the same seventh- or eighth-century Torah scroll. This identification was made by Mordechai Mishor and Edna Engel, who saw the Ashkar-Gilson Manuscript on display in the Shrine of the Book and recognized its similarities with the better-preserved London Manuscript. The London Manuscript contains Exodus 9:18–13:2, and the Ashkar-Gilson Manuscript picks up just a few verses later with Exodus 13:19–16:1. Only one column is lost between the two sheets. The London Manuscript is currently in the possession of New York collector Stephan Loewentheil; it derives its name from the London School of Jewish Studies (formerly Jews’ College in London), where the manuscript was once housed.