Brooklyn, NY - French Government Sues Brooklyn Dealer Over Ancient Scrolls

Brooklyn, NY - France's National Library has filed suit against a Brooklyn artifacts dealer, demanding the return of a stolen 13th-century Hebrew manuscript he purchased at auction in New York.
The lawsuit against Yosef Goldman is for the centuries-old book, known as "Hebrew 52" among international art experts, which vanished from the Bibliothèque Nationale de France. The manuscript contains the Old Testament, comprising the Five Books of Moses, plus five additional scrolls, and was in the French government's possession since 1668, the lawsuit claims.

Authorities aren't sure when the theft took place, but are certain the book sold for $358,000 at the famed Christie's auction house on May 19, 2000.

Now, the library is trying to regain the document itself, which may have been damaged and altered during the theft, according to the suit. "The purpose of the lawsuit brought by the French Ministry of Culture and the French National Library against Mr. Yosef Goldman to recover the possession of a Hebrew manuscript is to maintain the integrity of our large and important collection of Hebrew books, manuscripts and other documents," the library's president, Jean-Noël Jeanneney, said in a statement.

But Goldman, who claims he already passed the manuscript on to a collector, maintains he's ready to work out a deal - but it's Christie's that's gumming up the works, because they dont want to agree on refunding the purchase price, said Goldman's lawyer, Nathaniel Lewin. "Christie's has refused to do so."

Christie's denies it knew the item was stolen when it agreed to auction it, but said "Christie's is working closely with the Bibliothèque Nationale de France in an effort to secure the manuscript's return to France," said Christie's vice president Toby Usnik.