Printing and Modern Bibles — Hebrew and Greek Source Editions

The First Complete Printed Hebrew Bible

AD 1488

The Soncino press produced the first complete printed edition of the Hebrew Bible.

Full Account

Earlier printers had issued portions of the Hebrew Scriptures, but the Soncino Bible of 1488 gathered the complete Hebrew canon in print. Its production drew on the Jewish manuscript tradition and made a reproducible Hebrew text available to a wider circle of readers and scholars. Later printed editions would add fuller Masoretic notes and rabbinic commentary.

Historical Significance

The Soncino Bible marks the movement of the Hebrew Scriptures from manuscript codices into the age of print.

People, Places and Sources

Key people: Joshua Solomon Soncino; Jewish printers
Key places: Soncino, Italy
Languages: Hebrew, Aramaic