14 DAY TRIAL // 25% of the world's oldest known Bible is available on the Internet. Codex Sinaiticus dates back to the fourth century A.D. Until now, parts of it were kept for preservation in a couple of libraries and in a monastery in Egypt. The role of these institutions was that of completing the missing parts, as the version had originally been written on hides that degraded in time.
The British Library, which has in its possession part of the manuscripts of the document, together with its partners, the Leipzig University Library in Germany, the National Library of Russia and St Catherine's Monastery on the Mount Sinai, in Egypt, have announced today that, from now on, people will have access to the relic.
The original document is written in Greek, but the associates also offer a translation of the pages in English and German. Cross-references are available for the entire text. If someone wants to see what the old Greek correspondent for a word or even a passage is, they can go directly to the original version, through the easy to handle system of references.
"The British Library is excited to be part of the first major milestone towards making the full Codex Sinaiticus available online. Only a few people have ever had the opportunity to see more than a couple of pages of the world's oldest Bible. The website will make it possible for anyone to see this absolutely unique treasure. The scholarly value of being able to research the text is immeasurable." says Scot McKendrick, Head of Western Manuscripts at The British Library.
The remaining 75% of the oldest Bible is still under restoration, with estimations saying it will be ready for public disclosure by next July. Until then, users, whether believers, agnostics or atheists (because the text is, first and foremost, a relic) can have a look at the Codex. Still, they would better refrain their curiosity in the few days after launch, because the website is already facing problems, due to the large number of visitors, which is continuously exceeding 100.000.