Oldest Bible

Sensational find in Salzburg library

(Bild: Franz Neumayr)

Librarians have discovered fragments of one of the oldest Bibles from the time of Johannes Gutenberg. The treasure lay dormant among around 5000 books that the monks donated to the University of Salzburg.

The researchers at Salzburg University Library could hardly believe it. They recently discovered parts of a Bible from the time of Johannes Gutenberg, i.e. the 15th century. According to the Catholic Press Agency and ORF Salzburg, the valuable finds came from the library of the Capuchin monastery in Salzburg. The monks donated their library to the University of Salzburg in 2023 so that the collection could be researched.

Monks donated library to university
It contains around 5000 volumes. The sensational find was made by Beatrix Koll, head of the university library's special collection. She became aware of a special book cover. It was a page of the Epistle to the Ephesians from the Bible and was printed on parchment. The researcher discovered that it was a fragment of a 36-page Bible known as "B36".

Reference to Salzburg book printing workshop
According to the Catholic Press Agency, only 13 copies of this Bible are known worldwide. According to its director Ursula Schachl-Raber, the university was expecting unique finds. Perhaps more will be added. Beatrix Koll has already discovered a second "B36" fragment. A watermark indicates that it could have been used to give a book a new binding from Salzburg in the 17th century.