Dead Sea Scrolls Coming To The Pacific Northwest

By Eric Wagner

The Dead Sea Scrolls, perhaps the most important archaeological find of the 20th century, are coming to the Pacific Science Center in Seattle, Wash. The scrolls, which date from 250 B.C. to 68 A.D., include some of the earliest known written Hebrew texts.

Bryce Seidl, president of the Pacific Science Center, announced in December that Seattle will exhibit ten of the scrolls, including excerpts from Genesis, Exodus, and Ezekiel, and four scrolls never before seen by the public. The exhibit will run from September 23, 2006 until January 7, 2007, and will include period artifacts, such as inkwells, pottery, and leather goods, and interactive exhibits on the science behind the excavation, conservation, and interpretation of the scrolls.

The Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered in 1947, when a Bedouin shepherd stumbled across a cave containing ancient pottery vessels full of scroll fragments. Over the next decade, archaeologists excavated the site on the northwestern shore of the Dead Sea, ultimately unearthing a complex of eleven caves with pieces from over 850 documents. These pieces range from 30-foot long rolls of parchment to miniscule scraps and, in addition to their religious content, proved a rich trove of secular information, with calendars, and instructions on how to lead a pious life.

Seidl explained that the Pacific Science Center exhibit will show a new side of the scrolls. "The unique thing about having them here," he said, "is that we'll be able to tell a different story than most people." More than the scrolls' religious or cultural significance, he says, the display will emphasize techniques used to study them.

These techniques are many and ingenious, according to Martin Abegg, co-director of the Dead Sea Scrolls Institute at Trinity Western University in Langely, B.C. For instance, he says, the accuracy of radiocarbon dating was first tested on the scrolls' linen wrapping at the University of Chicago.

Modern techniques have also helped with the challenge of piecing the scrolls together. Imagine facing 50,000 pieces from several puzzles, with no idea of what goes where, or how many puzzles there are in the first place. To organize fragments, archaeologists first considered handwriting analysis, but they had no way of knowing whether a particular scribe wrote a single scroll, or jumped between scrolls, or had handwriting similar to eight other scribes.

DNA fingerprinting partially solved that dilemma. "It's all a question of forensics," said Abegg. The scrolls were most commonly written on animal skins, and archaeologists use DNA fingerprinting to determine which scrolls came from which animal. Consequently, says Abegg, scholars now know that the scrolls arrived at the Dead Sea caves from a wide range of geographical locations.

And as complicated as the science surrounding the scrolls is, the science of preserving them is nearly as complex. Under the careful watch of the Israel Antiquities Authority, the scrolls are kept in a dark, refrigerated vault in Jerusalem. To transport them from Israel to the United States, the scrolls will first be cleaned and placed between two layers of archival mesh. They will then be put in a glass case that will never be more than 15 degrees from vertical.

Once on display, the scrolls will be encased in a rigorously controlled environment that will never vary by more than two degrees Celsius. They will be exposed to light for only a few hours per day, and that from special fiber optic lights that will go on at set intervals, such as when a viewer is near a case.

And there will be many viewers. Seidl expects that between 200,000 and 250,000 people will come from around the region and beyond to see the scrolls while they are in Seattle. That would set an attendance record for the Science Center.

Eric Wagner is a graduate student in biology at the University of Washington.

Images

Top: Parchment, Hebrew language, Written 2nd century B.C.E.

Pseudo-EzekielÑ4Q386

This manuscript is the best preserved copy of a previously unknown composition. A non-biblical vision about future events in Egypt relating to the people of Israel is revealed to Ezekiel. This text is open to much interpretation as the events and figures revealed are enigmatic. Photo: Provided by the Pacific Science Center, courtesy of the Israel Antiquities Authority. Tsila Sagiv, photographer.

Middle: Region of the Dead Sea. The Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered by a Bedouin herder in a cave near Qumran. Ultimately, researchers found eleven caves containing scrolls. Provided by the Pacific Science Center, courtesy of the Israel Antiquities Authority.

Bottom: Cooking vessels and jar found at the Qumran site. Photo: Provided by the Pacific Science Center, courtesy of the Israel Antiquities Authority. Mariana Salzberg, photographer.