A Young Country, an Ancient Manuscript

Why It Matters

The codex gave the United States a flagship Near‑Eastern artifact, boosting scholarly research and signaling America’s emergence as a world‑class cultural patron.

Key Takeaways

• Freer discovered third‑oldest Gospel manuscript in Giza, 1906.
• Initial buyer’s remorse led to scholarly verification of authenticity.
• Manuscript contains non‑canonical passage, reshaping early Christian studies.
• Acquisition marked America’s first major Near‑Eastern codex, asserting cultural power.
• Gift founded the National Museum of Asian Art, promoting public education.

Summary

The video recounts how Charles Lang Freer, on his first trip to Egypt in December 1906, acquired the third‑oldest known copy of the Gospels—a papyrus codex later identified as the Freer Gospels.

Initially attracted by its ornate covers, Freer bought the manuscript from the renowned dealer Ali el‑Gabri after a brief examination by two Greek scholars. Within days he experienced buyer’s remorse and consulted Francis Kelsey, whose protégé Sanders spent decades proving the codex’s authenticity and its inclusion of a non‑canonical passage that could reshape understandings of early Christianity.

The film shows a historic photograph of Freer shaking hands with el‑Gabri against the pyramids, and reproduces shipping instructions for four crates bound for Detroit. Freer’s 1906 pledge to donate his growing collection—then 2,000 pieces—to the United States laid the groundwork for the National Museum of Asian Art, inaugurated in 1923.

By securing a rare Near‑Eastern manuscript, America announced its capacity to compete with European institutions, fostering public access to world heritage and reinforcing its emerging role as a global cultural patron.

Original Description

In this video, we tell the story of how museum founder Charles Lang Freer acquired the Washington Gospels, one of the world’s oldest surviving copies of the first four books of the New Testament, during his first visit to Egypt in 1906–1907. We trace the events through newspapers, Freer’s journal, shipping documents, and photographs. We also reflect on the role this manuscript—and the National Museum of Asian Art—played in the United States’ development as a global power.

Speakers: Dr. Chase F. Robinson, Dame Jillian Sackler Director of the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery and Freer Gallery of Art, National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution, and Dr. Beth Harris, Smarthistory

Washington Manuscript III - The Four Gospels (Codex Washingtonensis); Egypt, late 4th–early 5th century; ink on parchment; National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution, Freer Collection, Gift of Charles Lang Freer, F1906.274

More information about this object:

https://asia.si.edu/explore-art-culture/collections/search/edanmdm:fsg_F1906.274/

Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art: asia.si.edu

Smarthistory: smarthistory.org