A leaf about the scrolls of Shapira, the wadi where they were supposedly found and Hebrew inscriptions in the vicinity.
Moses Wilhelm Shapira (1830-1884), an antiquities collector and dealer who lived in Jerusalem in the second half of the 19th century. He was known as a purveyor of fake artifacts as a result of two famous cases – he faked a collection of Moabite earthenware, and scrolls that were supposedly discovered in the Dead Sea region in 1883. The scrolls contained a similar version (with minor differences) of the Book of Deuteronomy. Tests carried out by The British Museum researchers and other researchers, reached the conclusion that the scrolls were forged. The scrolls were announced to be fake, Shapira left London and in 1884, he committed suicide.
23.5X18 cm. in passé-partout 35X29 cm. Good condition.