The Lailashi Codex: the Crown of Georgian Jewry

Lailashi, a remote village at the footstool of the Caucasian mountains holds one of the most tantalising and valuable discoveries in biblical scholarship and Jewish history. It is the home of the Lailashi Codex, the greatest nearly complete ancient Masoretic Pentateuch adorned with exquisite micrographic designs and calligrams. It belongs to the exclusive group of the Hebrew biblical manuscripts known as Vavei Ha'Amudim (words beginning with the letter vav are the first words on each leaf of the manuscript except for the six cases defined by the scribal tradition). The provenance of the Lailashi Codex and its journey throughout centuries is as mysterious as its authorship and ownership. The leaves of this exceptional Hebrew manuscript are split between Georgia and Israel.

This book presents, for the first time, the fascinating history and content of the Lailashi Codex, tracing its turbulent journey replete with mysteries, imprisonments, executions, inaccurate references, conflicting records, unsubstantiated claims, possessions and re-possessions, controversies, and miracles, and ending with a most surprising discovery and the hope of addressing issues related to the cultural memory of this exquisite artefact.