Oldest book written in the world

The oldest treasures from 12 great libraries atlas obscura. The definition of oldest book is tough to pin down. The oldest printed text in the world the diamond sutra. The earliest history of books actually predates what would conventionally be called books today and begins with tablets, scrolls, and sheets of papyrus. This is the oldest book in the world the epic of gilgamesh youtube. It was written in sanskrit on bamboo strips, held together by. A book bound in wood and leather and found in a childs grave south of cairo is the oldest complete copy of the biblical book of psalms ever found and possibly the worlds oldest book, scholars. Completed in 800 ad, the book of kells is the worlds most famous and oldest book. Parts of it were composed more than 3700 years ago, predating even the bible, which is the second oldest book in history. The book is an exquisite copy of the first four gospels in latin.

Written on a tablet about the size of a cell phone, the 4,000. Parts of it were composed more than 3700 years ago, predating even the. Spiritual treasures from the age of the pyramids and the oldest book in the world by christian jacq 4. Certain literary texts are difficult to date, such as the egyptian. Puchner doesnt focus solely on the written world, as the title would suggest. Similarly the oldest avestan texts, the gathas, are believed to have been composed before bc, but the oldest avestan manuscripts date from the th century ad. The book is comprised of six pages of beaten 24carat gold covered with etruscan script, one of the few writing systems scholars have yet to decipher source. Worlds oldest known siddur unveiled in jerusalem prayer book no bigger than iphone said to be 1,200 years old, but experts wonder. Humans began to develop writing systems sometime in the 30th century bce in ancient mesopotamia, which. Written in geez, an ancient dead language of ethiopia, its nearly 800 years older than the king james version and contains 8188 books compared to 66. The earliest surviving written versions are dated to around 2,000 bc.

This sutra a sanskrit word that means a religious teaching or sermon, in particular that of the buddha is commonly regarded as one of the most revered texts of mahayana. Two of their oldest known literary works are the kesh temple hymn and the instructions of shuruppak, both of which exist in written versions dating to around 2500 b. Right now, the book known as the oldest in the world is a severalpagelong volume held by the bulgarias national museum of history. According to the guinness book of world records this bardsey, north leeds england pub is the oldest in britain. A 540yearold bookthe first to be printed in englishhas sold at auction for more than a million pounds. Its older than genesis, though genesis covers older material.

It is a mythologized account of an historical figure, gilgamesh. The oldest love poem in the world is only slightly younger. The rarity consists of 6 pages made of 24carat gold and fastened together. Nov, 2017 this book may just be the oldest book ever discovered, and it was written for you. The epic of gilgamesh is the oldest known piece of literature in the world. This book may just be the oldest book ever discovered, and it was written for you. The oldest book ever written, is the rig veda, one of the tenets of hinduism. The oldest history of the world is a work so obscure that to call it forgotten would be an abuse of terms. The oldest history of the world, free pdf global grey. The subtitle is closer to the actual book, but theres also a lot about nonfiction. The first is notable for being the oldest book in the world with a front cover still attached to it. The kesh temple hymn is one of the oldest surviving pieces of literature in the world.

The sheets are believed to be the oldest comprehensive. Ethiopian bible is oldest and most complete on earth. For a long time it was proclaimed to be the oldest book in the world. This 15th century gutenberg bible is pretty old but not nearly old enough to hold the record as the oldest book in the world. While the danube valle civilization isnt as famous as other ancient cultures around the globe, is it one of the oldest civilization to exist in europe, developing from around 5,500 and 3,500.

The first discovered tablets that were a part of this work were found during the excavations of a library temple in nippur. The pyramid texts are known as one of the oldest religious texts in the world. Written thousands of years ago, the judeochristian bible is a best sellerif not the best seller. But with that in mind, there is one piece of ancient egyptian literature that many people consider to be one of the oldest. What is considered the oldest book ever written in the world. Jun 28, 2016 written in geez, an ancient dead language of ethiopia, its nearly 800 years older than the king james version and contains 8188 books compared to 66. The worlds oldest book in the history of mankind written in etruscan, the language that is now lost, can be seen in bulgarias national museum of history in sofia. The first written story that has come down to us is the epic of gilgamesh. These texts were meant to be for the pharaoh and were reserved for him. The instruction of ptahhotep, the oldest book in the world. Oct 24, 2017 the written world is less of a focused book on one subject as of a collection of essays on a similar topic.

Throughout the written world, puchners delightful narrative also chronicles the inventionswriting technologies, the printing press, the book itselfthat have shaped religion, politics, commerce, people, and history. List of languages by first written accounts wikipedia. Though the epistolary novel a novel in the form of letters written by one or more characters was most popular before the 19th century, alice walker became a champion of the style with her 1982 pulitzer prize and national book awardwinning novel the color purple. The earliest written literature dates from about 2600 bce classical sumerian. The dispilio tablet was one of many artefacts that were found in the area, however the importance of the table lies in the fact that it has an unknown written text on it that goes back further than 5,000 bc. Amber tells us that the bible is the oldest book in the world. It includes the book of enoch, esdras, buruch and all three books of maccabees, and a host of others that were excommunicated from the kjv. The dispilio tablet the oldest known written text ancient. Set in the postcivil war american south, the novel follows a young african.

Completed in 800 ad, the book of kells is the world s most famous and oldest book. The sumerian civilization first developed writing around 3400 b. The sheets are believed to be the oldest comprehensive work involving multiple pages. An analog would be if i now wrote a book about jfk and compare it to a book written ten years ago about reagan. Holding the wealth of sixtysix books man is able to explore his beginning, his reason for living and his hope beyond the grave. Though officially records show it opened in 953 ad, theres evidence it goes back to 905 ad. What are the oldest languages in the world still used. There is actually a shorter surviving poem older than thatancient sumerias tale of the shipwrecked sailor. Ap photo losservatore romano, ho right now, the book known as the oldest in the world is a severalpagelong volume held by the bulgarias national museum of history. Oct 11, 20 second, i do hope the writers of this ancient script knew when a sentence was over. Of all the ancient writings, most scholars agree that the old testament of the bible is the oldest of religious books. The earliest intact european book is a pocket gospel book, written in latin and currently housed at the british librarywhich bought it for.

The earliest literary author known by name is enheduanna, a sumerian priestess and public figure dating to ca. Worlds oldest known siddur unveiled in jerusalem the. The danube valley civilization script is the oldest writing in the world and predates the sumerian writings in mesopotamia and the dispilo tablet. Then handbound, expensive, and elaborate books known as codices appeared. The diamond sutra was printed by method of woodblock printing, a strenuous method in which the text to be printed would be carved into a woodblocks surface, essentially to be used to stamp the words onto the writing surface medium. Stop the press, the oldest book in the world is an object that consists of six bound sheets of 24carat gold written in a lost etruscan language around 600 bc check out the bbc news item here. Most christians would likely predict that genesis was the oldest book in the bible given that it details the creation. Second, i do hope the writers of this ancient script knew when a sentence was over. I found this little book to be more than i expected. It was written in sanskrit on bamboo strips, held together by goat skin twine laces. Contained within its frail pages is found the eternal message of the one who has existed before time began.

This obscure book was put together by jarett kobek. Jul 18, 2014 a 540yearold bookthe first to be printed in englishhas sold at auction for more than a million pounds. What is considered the oldest book ever written in the. In spite of continuous opposition through the centuries to destroy it under different civilizations by religious extremists and secular governments, the bible has emerged triumphantly. During the 5th or 6th dynasties of the old kingdom in ancient egypt, the text was carved on to the walls and within the sarcophagi of the saqqara pyramids. Some people consider the bible the oldest book, as it was written in a time shortly, according to christianity and other religions, after the. Of these three writing supports papyrus is the oldest. The recuyell of the histories of troye is a version of a french book written around 1463. Jun 28, 2016 whilst these sutras began to be written during the 1 st century.

The oldest history of the world is a work so obscure that to call it forgotten would be. In a book that elaine scarry has praised as unique and spellbinding, puchner shows how literature turned our planet. The best documentary ever the oldest book ever found. I do not claim this book is from god, this is just a very interesting subject. The oldest history of the world discovered by occult science in detroit, michigan. The written world is less of a focused book on one subject as of a collection of essays on a similar topic. The oldest book in the world the instruction of ptahhotep. It is a difficult question, because it depends on what is meant by the bible. The oldest book in the world is the filled with wisdom quotes and teachings on how one is to conduct ones life and how to treat his fellow man. The oldest extant printed book is a work of the diamond sutra and dates back to 868 ad, during the tang dynasty. The book is irelands most lavish and glorious of irelands illuminated manuscripts. It was first written at bc through 500 bc and the words were given by god to its writers. Here are some of the oldest surviving books in the world. Certain literary texts are difficult to date, such as the egyptian book of the dead, which was recorded in the.

The oldest book in the bible is, unsurprisingly, found in the old testament. The vajracchedika prajnaparamita sutra has been translated from sanskrit into english variously as the diamond sutra, the diamond cutter sutra, the vajra sutra and the vajra cutter sutra. Though officially records show it opened in 953 ad, theres evidence it. It is the most elaborate manuscript of its kind to survive from the early middle ages. The former is an ancient ode to the kesh temple and the deities that inhabited it, while the latter is a piece. It is often also known as the liturgy to nintud or liturgy to nintud on the creation of man and woman.

Is the bible the oldest religious book in the world. Before the spread of writing, oral literature did not always survive well, though some texts and. The book of the dead is an ancient egyptian funerary text generally written on papyrus and used from the beginning of the new kingdom around 1550 bce to. The bible is the most wonderful book anyone could ever read. Contrary to popular belief, at least in certain circles, it wasnt written by god or adam or even moses. This question is pretty fraught for a couple of reasons. Still stored in the abba garima monastery in ethiopia, where they were most likely written, the gospels are two geezlanguage illuminated books, the second of which could date as far back as the 4th century.