Some of the rarest Biblical documents in the world are now on display in an exhibit at the University’s Collections Library, a division of the Harlan Hatcher Graduate Library.
The display, “From Papyri to King James: The Evolution of the English Bible,” ends Saturday.
“It chronicles the development of the Bible, with emphasis on the New Testament, from the year 119 to 1611.
“Visitors to the exhibit really are able to get a sense for how the text first looked and how it survived until the printing press,” said Kathryn Beam, curator for humanities collections in the Special Collections Library.
“The bulk of the exhibit is original material – papyri, medieval manuscripts, and the early printed bibles.”
All of the documents on display come from University collections, she said. “That’s what you have at a large place like this that is as old as it is – materials that are ancient as well as contemporary.”
She added that two special papyri represent the real gems of the exhibit.
“They are copies of the Letters of Saint Paul – the earliest known in the world.
They date from around 145 to 150 – we have two of them on display in this exhibit. We have 30 leaves from that codex (in total),” Beam said.
“These are the earliest that are known. Consequently, (they) are of great importance to scholars because they have the least chance for error.”
Also on display is one leaf from a Gutenberg Bible, the first book printed on a movable type printer. There are about 40 complete copies left in the world, and although the University does not have one, even a page of this rare volume is quite valuable, Beam said.
“A single leaf is very significant to our students, especially the art history and the library science students, because they can study the print and the topography,” Beam said.
“It’s the beginning of a new technology, so they’re quite interested in all that one page can tell us, which is a great deal, even if you’re not interested in the biblical text at all.”
Beam added, however, that most who come are not scholars, but Christian pilgrims.
“The largest numbers of people that come are church-based Bible study groups, and there may be 800 to 900 a year,” she said.
“Those who come on a religious pilgrimage (show up) nearly every day.”
But some students are not attracted to the exhibit because they feel it applies too exclusively to Christians members of the University community.
LSA sophomore Amie Paradime said that although she recognizes the historical value of the exhibit, she would not see it herself for personal reasons.
It applies “to those that are more connected to the Bible and with religion,” she said.
Engineering freshman Marshall Weir shares a similar perspective, although he said the entire University can benefit from the exhibit.
“It’s obviously most significant to the Christian community to see where their holy text has come from and what it’s gone through, but also for (non-Christians),” he said.
“I think it is useful to study that, like any great work of literature, as a work of history – seeing things they had in the past can give you another viewpoint.”
The exhibit is located on the seventh floor of the Graduate Library and is open 10 a.m to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.