INL displays the Crowns of Damascus manuscripts

EXHIBITION: Ancient 'Damascus Crowns' unveiled in Jerusalem in tribute to Syrian Chief Rabbi. In a moving ceremony at the National Library in Jerusalem, the public was granted a rare glimpse of the ancient “Damascus Crowns” — Torah manuscripts smuggled from Syria in a daring operation led by Rabbi Avraham Hamra (Israel National News).

The “Damascus Crowns” are some of the oldest Torah manuscripts in existence, featuring cantillation marks, vowel notation, and intricate masoretic commentary. They were preserved for generations in Damascus synagogues and were smuggled out using creative and covert methods.

For more on the Crowns of Damascus—eleven very early vocalized Hebrew Bible manuscripts—see here and links. For a summary overview of their story, see this Chabad essay by Yehudis Litvak: The Untold Story of the Crowns of Damascus.

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