What Do the Shapira Fragments Really Say?

In this session, I argue that we can know with confidence what the Shapira Fragments say—and I show why. Drawing viewers into the earliest efforts to assemble and decipher the sixteen leather strips, we will examine the material and scribal evidence that makes a reliable reconstruction possible. Using charts, graphics, and the firsthand reports of the nineteenth-century scholars who handled the fragments, we will look at their physical features, layout, letterforms, scribal hands, and how multiple copies of the same text were identified. With this foundation in place, we will then turn to what the fragments actually reveal—and why their contents matter for understanding the earliest form of Israel’s sacred tradition.

Watch the video [⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠HERE⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠]