It’s the lowest place on Earth, but exploring the Dead Sea is indeed an elevating experience.
The Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) recently completed another round of excavations at the Murabba’at Cave in the Judean Desert, as part of a long project led by the Theft Prevention Unit.
“In the last five years we are checking every cave here, even the smallest ones,” Amir Ganor, head of the Theft Prevention Unit in the IAA, told i24NEWS. “We found here a collection of papyrus from the Bar Kochba Revolt era. This cave suffered for years from antiquities looting. Once we entered the cave we found remains of looting from different eras.”
Some of the items date back around 10,000 years. But the most interesting period of these caves is the Roman Empire era of the first century CE.
In the late 1940s the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered, a collection of ancient manuscripts including biblical texts and many others which shed light on the Jewish sects of that time, perhaps even on the early days of Christianity. This remarkable discovery still echoes in the caves of the Judean Desert as the Antiquities Authority is in race to find more scrolls, and to save them from looters. In 2017 the Unit began a survey and excavations in the area, sometime using rappelling to get to the caves which don’t have access. A year ago the IAA published a series of outstanding finds found in the caves, including a biblical scroll and the oldest woven basket in the world.
Despite the heat, the dust and the long and hard walking dozens of volunteers took part in the excavation. They had to wear special masks to protect them from the dust, and helmets inside the cave which goes deep underground in narrow tunnels.
Stephanie Journo, originally from Paris told i24NEWS that she decided to come the place from Tel Aviv despite her busy schedule: “I found it very appealing to excavate and to find items which are linked to the Jewish heritage. Recently we are beginning to understand the meaning of all these finds. We French people love Israel, and we are happy to contribute whenever we have the chance.”
Among the new findings this season we can see fabrics, arrow heads from 10,000 years ago, and even some rings and jewelries.
However archaeologist Oriya Amichay from the IAA says that “We find here the same thing you would have taken if you escaped to the desert for a week: water, food, clothes, money sometimes. We find all of these in the “cave.” However, Amichay says some of the items are quite extraordinary.
“Sometimes we find unique items which we can’t explain, like this skewered pomegranate. I don’t know what they tried to do here, but it’s a cool item,” he explained.
The excavation season was called off for this year, but the quest to find more messages from the past continues in the Judean Desert.
