Medieval History
The Dead Sea Scrolls may have been written, at least in part, by a sectarian group called the Essenes, according to nearly 200 textiles discovered in caves at Qumran, in the West Bank, where the religious texts had been stored.
Scholars are divided about who authored the Dead Sea Scrolls and how the texts got to Qumran, and so the new finding could help clear up this long-standing mystery.
The research reveals that all the textiles were made of linen, rather than wool, which was the preferred textile used in ancient Israel. Also they lack decoration, some actually being bleached white, even though fabrics from the period often have vivid colours. Altogether, researchers say these finds suggest that the Essenes, an ancient Jewish sect, "penned" some of the scrolls.
Click here to read this article by Owen Jarus from LiveScience
- Computers Piece Together Scattered Medieval Scrolls
It's like something out of "The Da Vinci Code": Hundreds of thousands of fragments from medieval religious scrolls are scattered across the globe. How will scholars put them back together? The answer, according to scientists at Tel Aviv University,...
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By Owen Jarus Researchers have identified what is believed to be the world's earliest surviving Christian inscription, shedding light on an ancient sect that followed the teachings of a second-century philosopher named Valentinus. Officially called...
- Ancient Roman Jar Riddled With Mystery
By Owen Jarus An ancient clay vessel reconstructed from pieces discovered at a Canadian museum is riddled with tiny holes, leaving archaeologists baffled over what it was used for. The jar, just 16 inches (40 centimeters) tall and dating back about 1,800...
- The Written Word (hamila Haketuva)
Qumran cave 4 (of 11)When? When was the first written word? What was that moment like? Was there a thunderous quickening of realization? A mundane interruption? Was there a new sense of the real? A revolutionary possibility of memory beyond oral tradition?...
- Timothy I, Was Invited By The Abbassid Caliph Al-mahdi
In 781 AD the East Syriac Catholicos, Timothy I, was invited by the Abbassid Caliph al-Mahdi to answer a series of questions about Christianity over two days. The questions and his replies are extant in Syriac. I've placed the English translation...
Medieval History
Mystery of Dead Sea Scroll Authors Possibly Solved
The Dead Sea Scrolls may have been written, at least in part, by a sectarian group called the Essenes, according to nearly 200 textiles discovered in caves at Qumran, in the West Bank, where the religious texts had been stored.
Scholars are divided about who authored the Dead Sea Scrolls and how the texts got to Qumran, and so the new finding could help clear up this long-standing mystery.
The research reveals that all the textiles were made of linen, rather than wool, which was the preferred textile used in ancient Israel. Also they lack decoration, some actually being bleached white, even though fabrics from the period often have vivid colours. Altogether, researchers say these finds suggest that the Essenes, an ancient Jewish sect, "penned" some of the scrolls.
Click here to read this article by Owen Jarus from LiveScience
- Computers Piece Together Scattered Medieval Scrolls
It's like something out of "The Da Vinci Code": Hundreds of thousands of fragments from medieval religious scrolls are scattered across the globe. How will scholars put them back together? The answer, according to scientists at Tel Aviv University,...
- World's Earliest Christian Engraving Shows Surprising Pagan Elements
By Owen Jarus Researchers have identified what is believed to be the world's earliest surviving Christian inscription, shedding light on an ancient sect that followed the teachings of a second-century philosopher named Valentinus. Officially called...
- Ancient Roman Jar Riddled With Mystery
By Owen Jarus An ancient clay vessel reconstructed from pieces discovered at a Canadian museum is riddled with tiny holes, leaving archaeologists baffled over what it was used for. The jar, just 16 inches (40 centimeters) tall and dating back about 1,800...
- The Written Word (hamila Haketuva)
Qumran cave 4 (of 11)When? When was the first written word? What was that moment like? Was there a thunderous quickening of realization? A mundane interruption? Was there a new sense of the real? A revolutionary possibility of memory beyond oral tradition?...
- Timothy I, Was Invited By The Abbassid Caliph Al-mahdi
In 781 AD the East Syriac Catholicos, Timothy I, was invited by the Abbassid Caliph al-Mahdi to answer a series of questions about Christianity over two days. The questions and his replies are extant in Syriac. I've placed the English translation...