The Dead Sea Scrolls | ||
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The Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered in the years 1947-1956. Eleven caves were explored during this time eventually leading to the recovery of 900 manuscripts contained in over 25,000 pieces. The location of the primary site, Qumran, is about 14 miles east of Jerusalem. It is a dry area, found about one mile from the west shore of the Dead Sea. The bundled scrolls were discovered in pottery and are written in Greek, Aramaic, and Hebrew. In the 1950s and 1960s, 45 more scrolls were recovered at nearby sites. They were related to a mysterious religious group known as the Essenes. Most of the scrolls are small fragments, but some were found nearly intact. The Great Isaiah Scroll and the Great Psalms Scroll were in remarkably preserved condition. The earliest scroll has been dated to 250 B.C. and the most recent to 68 A.D. A total of 215 Qumran scrolls and 12 scrolls from nearby locations are classified as “biblical scrolls,” because they contain material found in the Hebrew Bible. A substantial portion of the scrolls has been translated, but recent work has focused on the fragmentary pieces. Specialized infrared technology is being applied to these scrolls often leading to astonishing results. The technology was developed for space exploration and analysis, but works quite well in bringing the long-invisible written words on the scrolls into view. | ||||
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