The Dead Sea Scrolls are the world’s oldest known biblical manuscripts.
In 1947 scrolls and scroll fragments dating from 150 BC were discovered
in a cave by local Bedouin teenagers. They were tending goats near the
ancient settlement of Qumran.
One of the boys threw a rock into a hole
in the cliff and heard the sound of pottery breaking. He and his friends
gained access to the interior of the cave which housed many clay jars,
containing leather and papyrus scrolls.
Qumran Caves:
Early in 1949 archaeologists identified cave 1, triggering the
beginning of an archaeological investigation of the area. Exploration of
the cave, which lies one kilometer north of Wadi Qumran, yielded the
remains of at least 70 manuscripts, including bits of the original seven
Scrolls.
The cave’s discovery established the origin of the purchased
Scrolls, while archaeological artifacts recovered there confirmed the
Scroll dates suggested by paleographic analysis.
At the same time the Bedouin continued to search for Scrolls, as these
scraps of leather proved to be a lucrative source of income.
Fresh
material found by Bedouin in other caves proved that the Cave 1
discovery was not an isolated phenomenon in the desert; additional caves
with manuscripts also existed.
The years between 1951 and 1956 were marked by accelerated
activity in both the search for caves and the archaeological excavation
of the Qumran site. An eight-kilometer-long strip of cliffs was
thoroughly investigated. Of the 11 Qumran Caves that yielded written
remains, five were discovered by Bedouin and six by archaeologists.
Qumran Cave 1 (1Q) –
Discovered by a young Bedouin shepherd in 1947 and excavated by
archaeologists in 1949. The first Dead Sea Scrolls were found in this
cave, later called Cave 1. They were the best-preserved, said to have
been protected by tall clay jars with lids intact. This seven-Scroll
discovery revolutionized the study of the Hebrew Bible and the origins
of Judeo-Christianity. Scrolls found in Cave 1 include the Community
Rule, War of the Sons of Light against the Sons of Darkness,
Thanksgiving Scroll (Hodayot), Isaiah A and B, Genesis Apocryphon and
Pesher Habakkuk (Habakkuk Commentary). When archaeologists excavated the
cave, they found additional fragments of these Scrolls and fragments of
dozens of other scrolls.
Qumran Cave 2 (2Q) –Discovered
by Bedouin in 1952. Cave 2 yielded fragments of many biblical books,
including all Five Books of Moses, Jeremiah and Psalms, as well as other
works such as Jubilees and the book of Enoch.
Qumran Cave 3 (3Q) –
Discovered and excavated by archaeologists in 1952. Cave 3 unearthed a
unique two-part copper Scroll, listing what may be sites of the Temple’s
buried treasure, hidden throughout the Judean wilderness and Jerusalem
area. According to the Scroll, the secret caches held astonishing
amounts of gold, silver, copper, and aromatics. Besides the Copper
Scroll, Cave 3 also contained fragments of about a dozen biblical and
non-biblical Scrolls, including a copy of Jubilees.
Qumran Cave 4 (4Q) – Discovered
by Bedouin treasure hunters in 1952, who were exploring right under the
noses of archaeologists excavating the site of Qumran. The most
legendary of all caves, Cave 4 revealed ample
treasures: thousands of fragments from hundreds of manuscripts,
comprising 75% of all material from the Qumran caves, including parts of
biblical and apocryphal books, biblical commentaries, works on Jewish
law, prayers, sectarian texts, tefillin and mezuzot. Due to their poor
condition, these fragments were among the most difficult to decipher and
translate.
Qumran Cave 5 (5Q) –
Discovered and excavated by archaeologists in 1952. Cave 5 yielded
fragments of approximately 25 parchment Scrolls, including biblical and
sectarian texts.
Qumran Cave 6 (6Q) –Discovered
by Bedouin in 1952. Cave 6 contained fragments of about 31 Scrolls
mostly written on papyrus, including biblical works, hymns, and
sectarian compositions. This small cave is the most accessible of the
Dead Sea Scrolls sites to visitors today.
Caves 7-10 (7Q, 8Q, 9Q, 10Q) –Discovered in 1955 by archaeologists. All manuscripts found in Cave 7 were in Greek, including a translation of the book of Exodus. Some scholars have attempted to identify certain tiny fragments from Cave 7 as New Testament texts. Cave 8
contained fragments of Genesis, Psalms, a mezuzah, a hymn and
tefillin. Additionally, the discovery of food remains, an abundance of
oil lamps and 68 leather reinforcing tabs for scrolls indicate that the
cave may have been used as a workshop. Cave 9 yielded only a single papyrus fragment. Archaeologists found only one inscribed potsherd in Cave 10.
Qumran Cave 11 (11Q) – Discovered
by Bedouin in 1956. The last of the Qumran Scrolls found to date were
discovered in this cave. The remains of around 30 manuscripts were
found, including a few nearly-complete Scrolls: Leviticus (written in
paleo-Hebrew), Psalms and an Aramaic targum of Job. The most exciting
find was the Temple Scroll (the longest of the Dead Sea Scrolls), which
rewrites the book of Deuteronomy and details regulations pertaining to
Jerusalem and the Jewish Temple.
Scrolls Content:
The majority of the Dead Sea Scrolls are religious works, divided on
this website into "Biblical" and "Non-Biblical" compositions, with a
special category for "Tefillin and Mezuzot". The non-literary records in
the corpus (mostly papyrus manuscripts from sites other than the Qumran
caves) are grouped into "Documents" and "Letters", and a small number
of "Scribal Exercises". The "Unidentified Texts" are tiny fragments in
such poor condition that they cannot be categorized.
There are also "Multiple Compositions". In most cases, a manuscript
label refers to a single text. However, sometimes a single label was
assigned to more then one composition. In some cases, this is due to the
re-use of a scroll in antiquity-- when writing was superimposed over
existing text (a palimpsest) or there are separate texts written on the
two sides of a scroll (recto and verso). Other cases of "multiple
compositions" with a single label manuscript number reflect modern
errors and disagreements about classifying fragments.
Occasionally, scholars mistakenly thought that different
fragments came from the same manuscript and grouped them together.
Sometimes the fragments are the same composition, e.g., the book of
Leviticus, but originate from different copies. In such cases, the texts
are given an extra letter to distinguish them, such as 4Q26, 4Q26a,
4Q26b, 4Q26c, which represent different copies of Leviticus that were
placed together.
New Discoveries:
Since the discovery of the initial ten caves, twenty more caves have
been found, most unexcavated. In fact they are at risk of being looted and robbed by treasure hunters. It
is possible that the newly found caves contain more scrolls, coins,
treasure, and artifacts that are historically significant.
Archaeologist Dr. Aaron Judkins is heading to Qumran in December 2016 to excavate a new cave as part of a team approved by the Israeli Antiquities Authority.
He writes:
“The discovery of a new cave at Qumran holds promise of being a
ancient repository that could contain treasures such as artifacts,
coins, and scroll jars with scrolls. Only an excavation to discover what
lies beneath the sands of time will enable us to solve this mystery.
The Israeli authorities have granted us a permit to excavate at Qumran,
the famous site of the community that produced the Dead Sea Scrolls.
This is an extraordinary opportunity for me to work with lead
archaeologist Dr. Randall Price & archaeologist Bruce Hall…This
world renowned site is historically famous, and is where the majority of
the Dead Sea Scrolls (or DSS) were discovered in 1947 in Qumran. The
dig has been given a narrow window from the end of December 2016 into
the first weeks of January 2017.”
Judkins is known as the “Maverick Archaeologist”, a nickname he
earned for his unconventional thinking and questing for historical
truth. Most recently he worked on an expedition and documentary about
Noah and the Ark. He has also spent time researching the elongated
skulls of Peru and Bolivia, pursuing his passion of forbidden
archaeology. He is currently raising funds to support his participation
in the Dead Sea Cave project.
Site Location:
Link- Qumran Caves
