The Anchor Bible Series, which consists of a commentary series, a Bible dictionary, and a reference library, is a scholarly and commercial co-venture which was begun in 1956, with the publication of individual volumes in the commentary series. Having initiated a new era of cooperation in biblical research among scholars, over 1,000 scholars—representing Jewish, Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Protestant, Muslim, secular, and other traditions—have now contributed to the project. Their works offer discussions that reflect a range of viewpoints across a wide theological spectrum. The Anchor Bible project continues to produce volumes that keep readers current on recent scholarship and are grounded in analysis. The works bring advances in science and technology to bear on biblical materials, making historical and linguistic knowledge related to the interpretation of the biblical record available to experts and students alike. To date, more than 120 volumes had been published, initially under oversight of the series' founding General Editor David Noel Freedman (1956–2008), and subsequently under John J. Collins (2008–Present). Each volume was originally published by Doubleday (a division of Random House, Inc.), but in 2007, the series was acquired by Yale University Press. Yale now prints all new volumes as the Anchor Yale Bible Series, while continuing to offer all previously published Anchor Bible titles as well.