From Bedouin to Scholars: The Discovery and Preservation of the Dead Sea Scrolls

The Dead Sea Scrolls largely belong to the realm of scholars and researchers. However, this was not always the case. When the scrolls were discovered, they belonged to the realm of Bedouin. The Bedouin sold those first few manuscripts to merchants. Finally, some were sold to the Hebrew University of Jerusalem while others were sold to the religious leaders of St. Mark’s Monastery. In this post, I will discuss five important figures associated with the discovery and the early preservation of the Dead Sea Scrolls. This list is quite diverse. It includes Bedouin, a merchant, a religious leader, and two scholars. Truly, many different people are due credit for the discovery and preservation of these fascinating manuscripts. For a full discussion of these figures, I recommend Weston Fields’ work Dead Sea Scrolls: A Full History. Citations to his work are found in parentheses.

 

Juma (left) and Mohammad ed-Dib (right)
Photo by John C. Trever

1) Mohammad ed-Dib, a member of the Taʿamireh Bedouin, is credited with the discovery of these manuscripts in either late 1946 or early 1947. The discovery happened when a rock was thrown to guide the Bedouin’s herds. This stray rock “coincidentally” broke something inside a nearby cave. Mohammed and another friend investigated the cave the following day and discovered the first manuscripts now known as the Dead Sea Scrolls (25). The greatest archeological find of the last century was, thus, a mere accident.

2) Kando (Khalil Eskander Shahin), a Syrian Orthodox shop owner in Bethlehem, verified shortly after this discovery that the scrolls were leather. Kando’s involvement with the Scrolls would from this point be extensive. In fact, the Bedouin would bring the manuscripts to Kando, who was their sole dealer. As the Scrolls dealer, he would sell the manuscripts to de Vaux at the École (the “French School” [see 147-154]) on behalf of the Bedouin.

3) Mar Samuel of St. Mark’s Monastery in Jerusalem purchased 1QIsaa, the Habakkuk Commentary, and the Manual of Discipline from the Bedouin on July 19, 1947 (33). He had the opportunity to buy 1QIsab, the War Scroll, the Thanksgiving Scroll, and the Genesis Apocryphon but missed the opportunity because of miscommunication (29-30). Samuel immediately believed the scrolls to be ancient, but most others were less certain (see 39 for a list of the uninterested observers).

4) Father van der Ploeg was the second person outside of the local Arab community to see the scrolls. Although van der Ploeg recognized the antiquity of the scrolls, he had little involvement in their publication (see 33-35).

5) Eleazar Sukenik was a professor of archaeology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and specialized in Hebrew epigraphy and the archaeology of ancient synagogues (41). According to Fields, he was the first person with the skills necessary to evaluate the scrolls properly (39-40). His first acquaintance with the scrolls was at the gateway to military Zone B with a barbed wire fence between him and his friend, an antiquities dealer, Nasir Ohan. This meeting took place on November 24, 1947 (41). On November 30, 1947, Sukenik decided to buy the manuscripts presented to him (likely the War Scroll and Thanksgiving Scroll) for the Hebrew University (45). Sukenik later purchased 1QIsab, a fragment of Isaiah, and possibly some Daniel fragments on December 22, 1947 (50).

View of Qumran Cave 4 discovered by Bedouin in 1952

The discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls is a fascinating story. The fact that they were discovered by “accident” by Bedouin only adds to the intrigue. Indeed, modern scholars owe a great deal of gratitude to past scholars; this much is certain. Gratitude, however, must also be extended to Bedouin, merchants, and shop owners.

5 Surprising Details about the Initial Discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls

Several details about the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls are common knowledge. Many in the public, for example, are aware that approximately seventy years ago Bedouin accidentally discovered hundreds of ancient manuscripts near the Dead Sea. Although many understand a few general details about this discovery, several other details are less known, and perhaps even surprising. I discovered many of these details and many more while reading Weston W. Fields' Dead Sea Scrolls: A Full History. Here are five less known and surprising details about the initial discovery of these manuscripts and the subsequent few months of trying to sell them.

1) The discovery of these manuscripts in 1947 by Bedouin was not the first-time manuscripts were discovered near the Dead Sea. In the third century AD, Origen discovered a manuscript preserving psalms in a cave near Jericho (22). Then, again in the eighth or ninth century AD, several manuscripts with psalms attributed to David were discovered near Jericho (29 n38).

2) The Bedouin did not rush to sell their newly discovered treasure but waited until they “had occasion” in the words of Fields (26). Before making it to market, it has been reported that one manuscript was destroyed by children playing. The scraps of that manuscript were then thrown away (26)! Other reports claim that pieces were used as sandal straps, but Fields believes this story to be unlikely (26).

3) When the Bedouin finally arrived at market (roughly two months or so after the discovery), they had a difficult time selling these manuscripts. A suspicion that the scrolls were stolen led the first, or perhaps even the first two antiquities dealers to pass on purchasing these manuscripts, at less initially. Fields suggests that the Bedouin were only looking for a small amount of money in exchange for the manuscripts in their possession (26). These manuscripts were likely 1QIsa^a, the Habakkuk Commentary, and the Manual of Discipline in two pieces (29).

4) The Syrian Orthodox Metropolitan Mar Athanasius Yeshue Samuel purchased 1QIsa^a, the Habakkuk Commentary, and the Manual of Discipline. He, however, almost missed his opportunity to buy them when the monastery steward at St. Mark’s monastery in Jerusalem sent the Bedouin away because the manuscripts were written in Hebrew, not Syriac (29-30).

5) Kando, a Bethlehem merchant who became acquainted with the manuscripts because he could verify that they were written on leather, agreed to sell 1QIsa^a, the Habakkuk Commentary, and the Manual of Discipline for the Bedouin on consignment for commission (one-third of the purchase price). He sold these manuscripts to Samuel for roughly $97 saying, “Much dirty paper for little clean paper” (33 n52). Samuel later sold his scrolls in 1954 for $250,000.

First four columns of 1QIsa^a
http://dss.collections.imj.org.il/isaiah

The story of the discovery, collection, reconstruction, and publication of the Dead Sea Scrolls is a riveting tale that Weston Fields traces and narrates in Dead Sea Scrolls: A Full History. Anyone interested in these manuscripts will find the details recorded here quite fascinating and worth the time to read and enjoy.