The Dead Sea Scrolls

Paper Summary:

A look at the origins of the Dead Sea Scrolls and who actually found them, as discussed in Hanks's book. The paper provides a history of Palestine at the time and the sociological and historical implications of the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls. It looks at how their revelation became a political issue.

From the Paper:

"Hershell Hanks begins his book "The Mystery and Meaning of the Dead Sea Scrolls," (Shanks, 1998) with a startling revelation. Despite numerous treatises, articles and books on the subject, it is still unclear who found The Dead Sea Scrolls. An Arab shepherd boy or maybe two shepherd boys searching for their lost sheep close to the banks of the Dead Sea discovered the "Scrolls" in 1947 in a cave in Qumran "though the date varies depending on the source. In an effort to look for the lost sheep, the Bedouin shepherd began throwing stones into nearby caves. An unexpected cracking sound of earthenware inside the cave encouraged him to explore further. Muhammad Ahmad el-Hamed of the Ta'amireh tribe is assumed to be the shepherd who found the scrolls. This fact has however been constantly debated and interviewing and identifying the right individual who found the scroll was never possible at the time."

More papers on The Dead Sea Scrolls:

• Research Paper # 62744 : "The Dead Sea Scrolls"
• Essay # 26021 : "The Dead Sea Scrolls"
• Essay # 42260 : "The Dead Sea Scrolls"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: