jan 1, 283 BC - Ptolemy II (Egypt)

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Ptolemy II ruled Egypt including Judea at the height of Ptolemaic power and made Alexandria the intellectual capital of the Greek world, expanding its library and museum. According to the Letter of Aristeas he commissioned seventy two Jewish elders to translate the Torah into Greek, producing the Septuagint. The legendary framing of the story is not historical, but the translation did take place under his patronage and for the use of a Greek speaking Jewish community that no longer read Hebrew fluently. It was the first translation of the Torah into any language and made Jewish scripture accessible to the wider ancient world.

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