Alba Bible

The translation was completed under the supervision of Moses Arragel [es], who was rabbi of the Jewish community of Maqueda in the Spanish province of Toledo.

[5] Arragel initially hesitated due to the unrest, but ultimately chose to assist Guzman in translating and interpreting the manuscript.

[6] After the fall of Granada in 1492, the Spanish Inquisition led to the expulsion of Jews from Spain and the destruction of many books.

In the aftermath of a series of anti-Jewish riots centered in Madrid,[5] Don Luis de Guzmán believed that he could help heal the rift and build a bridge of understanding between Christians and Jews by commissioning a Castilian translation of the Old Testament from the original Hebrew, accompanied by commentary from Jewish scholars interpreting the text of their holy book.

[6] On April 5, 1422, Don Luis de Guzmán initiated his project by sending a letter to rabbi Moses Arragel inviting him to compose "vna biblia en rromançe, glosada e ystoriada."

It is unknown what convinced Rabbi Arragel to accept as he initially hesitated in an extensive reply letter to Guzmán.

[1] Meanwhile, the hunt for so-called heretical writings continued, and many copies were kept safe by the highest-ranking members of society.

[1] Although she was not the commissioner of the Alba BIble, it was common that such writings would be passed down generationally once in the royal collection.

[7] The whereabouts of the Alba Bible were unknown from 1492, the year the Alhambra Decree was issued mandating the expulsion of all Jews from Spain.

In 1922 an illustrated facsimile edition of three hundred copies was published by the scholar Antonio Paz y Meliá.

During the history of this Bible it was once on display as a Spanish exhibition at the National Museum in Stockholm starting in the winter of 1959 through 1960.

[1] The Alba Bible contains a series of comments on the writing of both Jewish and Christian theologians, including Abraham ibn Ezra, Maimonides, Nahmanides, Joseph Kimhi, Asher ben Jehiel, Shlomo ben Aderet, Ya'acob and Nissim of Gerona.

This is depicted clearly in this manuscript being illustrated by one miniature, folio 29v, making it a perfect example of how the differences between this Bible, and many others that are not collaborative.

Brother Arias was from the monastery in Toledo and through their theological collaboration it is likely that Arragle was able to understand the view of Grand Master Guzmán.

Though in isolated cases, these viewpoints were already present and part of Arrangles' plan and can be found in captions alongside the miniatures.

Folios  68v and 69r both tell the story of the parting of the Red Sea as it is usually depicted in Christian art, with iconography influenced by the Jewish Torah.

[1] A manager featured folio 108V, the spies, with a cluster of grapes which is described in the Bible in verse 23, as being carried by two men.

The thought that the couple only died after the lance was dislodged made it clear that Phinehas was free from sin, or any such wrongdoing.

But since it was thought that the illustrations had been drawn with the blood pouring on the ground before the Bible’s comments were made, there may have been adjustments to the tale.

Next to this miniature is a small mound of foreskins and it states that the collection of the sacrifice smelled so sweet that it brought joy to the Lord.

[1] This Bible was made at a time when there were anti-Semitic riots by the Christian majority against the Jewish minority of Spain.

The patron intended to create a conversation, in order to find a way towards an understanding, though this proved to be too ambitious.

[10][8] (citation #'s still need to be fixed) Another significant part of this Bible was Rabbi Arragel’s use of common language, often using idioms and a turn of phrase popular at this time.