The scroll fragments contain verses from the books of the prophets Zechariah and Nahum. The scrolls were written in Greek.
Archaeologists have been working in the caves and cliffs of the Judean desert since 2017 as part of a ‘national operation aimed at preventing looting of antiquities’, according to the press release.
The basket pictured here is considered to be the oldest complete example in the world. Credit: Yaniv Berman / Israel Antiquities Authority
Teams also found a 6,000-year-old skeleton of a child, rare coins and a complete basket that is believed to be the oldest in the world, which is 10,500 years old.
The Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered 70 years ago in caves around Qumran and are one of the most important scriptural finds of archeology, with the oldest versions of the Hebrew Bible and other Jewish texts from the time of Jesus. Most scrolls are kept at the Shrine of the Book, which is part of the Israel Museum in Jerusalem.
Archaeologists have also found these rare coins. Credit: Sacrifice of Zion / Israel Antiquities Authority
The latest scroll fragments were found in the Cave of Horrors, which is about 80 meters below a cliff in the Judean desert. This can only be achieved by abseiling from above.
Since the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered more than 70 years ago, the area has attracted the attention of looters, according to the press release. Climatic conditions in the area mean that scrolls and ancient documents are exceptionally well preserved.
“The purpose of this national initiative is to rescue these rare and important heritage assets from the clutches of the robbers,” said Israel Hasson, director of the Israel Antiquities Authority, who called for more resources to be completed to complete the recovery operation. .
The site is known as the Cave of Horrors. Credit: Eitan Klein / Israel Antiquities Authority
“We have to make sure we recover all the data that has not yet been discovered in the caves before the robbers do. Some things are out of value.”
Hananya Hizmi, chief personnel officer of the Archaeological Department of the Civil Administration in the West Bank, said it was an ‘exciting moment’ and the results of the operation shed more light on the history of the region.
“The findings testify to a rich, diverse and complex way of life, as well as to the harsh climatic conditions that prevailed in the region hundreds and thousands of years ago,” Hizmi said.
According to the press release, since October 2017, teams have been investigating 80 kilometers of desert caves, many of which are virtually inaccessible.
Eleven lines of text have been reconstructed, including parts of a Greek translation of Zechariah 8: 16-17. On another fragment, verses from Nahum 1: 5-6 were identified.
Archaeologists had to drag into the cave of horror. Credit: Eitan Klein / Israel Antiquities Authority
Archaeologists have also discovered the partially mummified skeleton of a 6-12-year-old child, buried in a shallow pit under two flat stones and wrapped in cloth, which is 6,000 years old.
“It was clear that everyone who buried the child wrapped himself in it and pressed the edges of the cloth under him, just as a parent covered his child in a blanket,” said Ronit Lupu, an archaeologist from the Israeli Antiquities Authority. said.
‘The child’s skeleton and the cloth packaging were remarkably well preserved and due to the climatic conditions in the cave a natural mummification took place; the skin, tendons and even the hair are partially preserved, despite the passage of time. “
Centuries of hot and dry climate mean that the large basket with a capacity of 90-100 liters and made of plant material, can give new insight into how products were stored about 1000 years before the invention of pottery, reads the press release.