Join Sarah Pearce, an expert on the Dead Sea Scrolls, Ian Karten, a Jewish Studies professor, and Charlotte Hempel, a specialist in Second Temple Judaism. They dive into the gripping tale of how a Bedouin shepherd's discovery in 1946 unearthed texts that reshaped our understanding of Jewish beliefs around the time of Jesus. The discussion reveals the complexities of the Essenes, the significance of the Jerusalem temple, and the advanced technologies now illuminating these ancient writings. A fascinating look at our historical roots!
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Discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls
In 1946, a Bedouin shepherd, Mohamed Ed-Deeb, discovered the Dead Sea Scrolls while searching for a lost goat.
He threw a rock into a cave, heard a hollow sound, and found a jar containing ancient manuscripts.
insights INSIGHT
Significance of the Scrolls
The Dead Sea Scrolls are the most substantial firsthand evidence of Jewish beliefs and practices around Jesus's lifetime.
They offer insights into how the Hebrew Bible was formed and the world from which Christianity emerged.
insights INSIGHT
Range of the Scrolls
The Dead Sea Scrolls comprise around 1,000 texts, including biblical manuscripts, previously known texts in their original Aramaic, and entirely new material.
Many fragments are small, but some are substantial portions of scrolls.
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The Dead Sea Scrolls are a collection of ancient Jewish texts discovered in the Qumran Caves near the Dead Sea. They represent a significant find for biblical scholarship, providing insights into Jewish religious life during the Second Temple period. The scrolls include various biblical texts, as well as non-biblical works such as commentaries, sectarian rules, and prayers. Their discovery has shed light on the development of Jewish religious thought and practice, and their textual variations have contributed to a deeper understanding of the biblical canon. The Dead Sea Scrolls continue to be studied and analyzed, offering valuable information about the history and culture of ancient Judaism.
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the revelatory collection of Biblical texts, legal documents, community rules and literary writings.
In 1946 a Bedouin shepherd boy was looking for a goat he’d lost in the hills above the Dead Sea. He threw a rock into a cave and heard a hollow sound. He’d hit a ceramic jar containing an ancient manuscript. This was the first of the Dead Sea Scrolls, a collection of about a thousand texts dating from around 250 BC to AD 68. It is the most substantial first hand evidence we have for the beliefs and practices of Judaism in and around the lifetime of Jesus.
The Dead Sea Scrolls have transformed our understanding of how the texts that make up the Hebrew Bible were edited and collected. They also offer a tantalising window onto the world from which Christianity eventually emerged.
With
Sarah Pearce
Ian Karten Professor of Jewish Studies and Head of the School of Humanities at the University of Southampton
Charlotte Hempel
Professor of Hebrew Bible and Second Temple Judaism at the University of Birmingham
and
George Brooke
Rylands Professor Emeritus of Biblical Criticism and Exegesis at the University of Manchester
In Our Time 
