Culture
Words by Michel Wlassikoff
Robert Estienne’s Hebrew bible, 1539
The Hebrew Bible printed by Robert Estienne in 1539, dedicated to King François I and edited by theologian François Vatable, featured engraved Hebrew alphabets and earned Estienne the title of Imprimeur royal for Hebrew and Latin letters.
The Hebrew Bible printed by Robert Estienne in 1539, dedicated to King François I and edited by theologian François Vatable, featured engraved Hebrew alphabets and earned Estienne the title of Imprimeur royal for Hebrew and Latin letters.
The Hebrew Bible printed by Robert Estienne in 1539 was dedicated to François I, King of France. It is also known as the “Vatable Bible”, because it was the theologian and scholar François Vatable who edited and commented on it, based on the Vulgate and Leon of Judah versions and the rabbinical notes of David Kimhi. Vatable was an ecclesiastic and professor of Hebrew, who restored the study of the Hebrew language in France. Robert Estienne had several Hebrew alphabets engraved for his printing and, according to HD Vervliet, at least one of them was his work. On June 24, 1539, François I appointed Robert Estienne his Imprimeur royal for Hebrew and Latin letters. He became Royal Printer for Greek after printing the Eusebius in 1544.
