Aleppo's market
Lebanese Parliament building
Photo: Bitmuna
The hunt for the crown
The Aleppo Codex (Aram Tzova Crown) is the oldest known complete manuscript of the Hebrew Bible. In 1943, the linguist and biblical scholar Prof. Moshe David Cassuto left for Aleppo, Syria to examine the ancient manuscript. He documented his journey in pictures
Moshe David Cassuto, (1883 - 1951), was a rabbi and biblical scholar born in Florence, Italy. In 1938 anti-Semitic laws forced him to leave his job and he moved to the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
In 1943 Cassuto traveled to the Syrian town of Aleppo to study the Aleppo Codes kept in the city’s Great Synagogue. He was one of the very few scholars to study this key manuscript before most of the Torah section disappeared as a result of the 1947 anti-Jewish riots in Syria.
Cassuto brought with him photos from Aleppo and Beirut, Lebanon. The photos before you were made public by Cassuto's great-granddaughter.
Aleppo's main street
Aleppo's fort
Fort's entrance
Zechariah Mosque
City street
Beirut
Electricity Station
Government building
Clock tower
Beirut
For more Trips to the Past - click here
