A Torah scroll from the 16th century was placed on display at the Riyadh International Book Fair, the Saudi Sabq news site reported last week.
The Torah scroll was displayed at a pavilion alongside over 25 other rare manuscripts.
مكتبة الملك فهد الوطنية مسوية عرض لمخطوطات وكتب تاريخية مهمة للمنطقة اغلبها اسلامية وعربية بس الشي اللي كان يشد الانتباه معروضة للتوراة✡ يعود للقرن 16 م من دون ذكر المصدر pic.twitter.com/avq7eSV74b
— ✨الكاهنة العليا✨ (@Saudiah_Reeepat) October 1, 2023
Photos from the fair showed visitors crowding around the glass box where the Torah scroll was being displayed.
A text explaining what the scroll is reads “a scroll of leather, containing explanations and texts of the Torah in Hebrew. Length: (40 meters x 90 cm). It dates back to the 16th century AD, according to estimates.”
The text does not mention where the scroll is from or its Jews ties.
40,000 square meters of books at Riyadh Book Fair
The manuscripts at the pavilion belong the King Abdulaziz Complex for Endowment Libraries, the King Salman Library at King Saud University, and the King Fahad National Library.
The book fair is being held at the King Saud University in an over 40,000 square meter complex, according to the Saudi Press Agency. Over 1,800 publishing houses and 800 pavilions were included in the book fair.