Volunteers left ‘absolutely speechless’ after discovering rare £56,280 object in charity store

Charity shop workers at an Oxfam bookshop in Chelmsford were left “absolutely speechless” after a rare Chinese Bible sold for £56,280 at auction.
The valuable text was discovered by volunteers in a pile of donations.

Initially valued at between £600 and £800, the Bible’s final price stunned staff who watched the bidding climb to an unexpected sum.
The sale took place at Bonhams auction house after two weeks of competitive bidding.
Oxfam in Chelmsford
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The rare text dates from between 1815 and 1822 and is historically significant as the first complete Bible written in Chinese.
It was translated by John Lassar and Joshua Marshman, making it an exceedingly rare item.
Dr Lorenza Gay from Bonhams noted they “could not trace at auction previously” any comparable examples.
The Bible was spotted by eagle-eyed volunteers Chris Tyrrell and Eleanor Atac, who suspected it might be valuable when they found it among donated books.
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