Ten Commandments tablet sells for more than double estimate at over $5 million

A marble tablet bearing an ancient rendition of text related to the Ten Commandments has sold at Sotheby’s in New York for $5.04 million, more than twice as much as the initial highest estimate preceding the auction.

Before the tablet went under the hammer on 18 December, Sotheby’s had estimated that the tablet, which it claims dates from the late Roman-Byzantine era, would sell for anywhere between $1 million to $2 million.

The compelling artefact was promoted by the auction house as “the earliest surviving inscribed tablet of the Ten Commandments” whose “text it preserves represents the spirit, precision and concision of the Decalogue in what is believed to be its earliest and original formulation”. But the “contentious” tablet drew intense scrutiny ahead of the auction sale, with scholars disputing its provenance and authenticity, reports the Catholic News Agency (CNA).

“It may or may not be ancient,” Christopher Rollston, the chairman of the Department of Classical and Near Eastern Languages and Civilisations at George Washington University told CNA in an interview. “Sotheby’s has not done its due diligence with this piece, and I find that to be deeply problematic.”

CNA notes Rollston’s argument that while Sotheby’s cites patterns of wear on the tablet as evidence of its ancient age, decades of use as a doorway threshold could account for the abrasions on the stone.

The tablet was unearthed in 1913 during railway excavations along the southern coast of Israel, near the sites of early synagogues, mosques and churches.

The significance of the discovery went unrecognised for many decades, which including the tablet for thirty years serving as a paving stone at the entrance to a local home, with the inscription facing outwards and being exposed to the elements and to foot traffic.

In 1943, the tablet was sold to a scholar who “recognised it as an important Samaritan Decalogue featuring the divine precepts central to many faiths”, Sotheby’s reports. The tablet subsequently changed hands further times, eventually making its way to the auction house in New York.

The original site of the tablet was likely destroyed during either the Roman invasions of 400-600 AD or the later Crusades of the 11th century. It is reckoned that the tablet may have originally been displayed in a synagogue or a private dwelling.

The twenty lines of text incised on the stone closely follow the Biblical verses relating to both the Christian and Jewish traditions, Sotheby’s notes. However, the tablet contains only nine of the commandments as found in the Book of Exodus, omitting the admonition: Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord in vain.

Instead, it includes a different 10th “directive” – to worship on Mount Gerizim, a holy site specific to the Samaritans – though the auction house argued that the tablet’s civilisational significance remains undiminished.

Patty Gerstenblith, Distinguished Research Professor of Law and Director of the Center for Art, Museum & Cultural Heritage Law at DePaul University, told CNA: “Auction houses don’t have any specific legal obligations to verify authenticity and provenance. The auction house typically owes a fiduciary obligation to the consignor, not the buyer.”

As a result, Gerstenblith explained, if doubts arise after a sale, a buyer could face hurdles when it comes to compensation.

“If the artefact turns out not to be authentic or not to have lawful provenance, the purchaser may be able to sue the auction house,” Gerstenblith told CNA.

But, she added, such claims often hinge on whether the auction house’s assertions amounted to a warranty or were made fraudulently.

The $5.04 million sale demonstrates the “robust interest in this piece of purported biblical heritage”, CNA reports.

But it also notes that the scholarly scientism voiced by experts like Rollston suggests that the tablet’s legacy, along with its place in the historical record, is likely to remain in question and to continue to be rigorously debated.

RELATED: Ten Commandments up for auction, valued at $2 million

Photo: The reportedly oldest known stone tablet inscribed with the Ten Commandments, dating from 300 to 800 AD, displayed at Sotheby’s auction house ahead of its sale in New York City, USA, 9 December 2024. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images.)

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