Thomas Jefferson’s Quran is a historically significant artifact that sheds light on the Founding Father’s intellectual curiosity and commitment to religious freedom.

Origin and Background
Jefferson owned a two-volume English translation of the Quran by George Sale, first published in 1734. Jefferson’s copy was the second edition, printed in London in 1764. Sale’s translation was not just a literal rendering of the Arabic Quran; it included an extensive introduction and commentary aimed at helping European readers understand Islamic beliefs and legal structures. The tone was scholarly, though influenced by Enlightenment-era critiques of religion.

Jefferson purchased the set in 1765, as recorded in the daybook of the Virginia Gazette during his time in Williamsburg, Virginia. This was before he began his formal legal and political career, indicating his early engagement with world religions and comparative law.

Survival and Preservation
A fire destroyed Jefferson’s family home at Shadwell in 1770, but there are no records of him re-acquiring the Quran afterward—implying that the original copy survived the fire. Later, Jefferson sold this and many other books to the Library of Congress in 1815 after the original library was burned by British troops during the War of 1812. His Quran was rebound by the Library in 1918 and remains part of its collection.

Symbolic Use in Modern America
Jefferson’s Quran gained renewed attention in 2007 when Keith Ellison, the first Muslim elected to the U.S. Congress, used it for his ceremonial oath of office. Ellison deliberately chose Jefferson’s Quran to emphasize the Founding Fathers’ commitment to religious liberty and to illustrate that Islam has long had a place within the broader American religious landscape.

Significance
Jefferson’s possession of the Quran does not indicate he was a Muslim, but it demonstrates his belief in studying and understanding other cultures and legal systems. As someone who helped frame the U.S. Constitution and advocated strongly for separation of church and state, his ownership of the Quran is often cited as evidence of the pluralistic vision many of the Founders held.

In short, Jefferson’s Quran serves as both a historical artifact of early American engagement with Islam and a modern symbol of religious inclusion in American democracy.