Tel Aviv University's research has compiled various sections through DNA analysis of the skins that make up the ancient scrolls.

• Parchment from Dead Sea Scrolls // Photo Archive: IP

  Photo: 

  Shai Halevi, Israel Antiquities Authority

New research opens a gap for understanding the spiritual world of Judaism. Tel Aviv University's research in collaboration with the Israel Antiquities Authority, for the first time, assembled the puzzle of the Scrolls with the help of ancient DNA detection and analysis.

The DNA was taken from the animal skins on which the scrolls were written. Completion of the jigsaw scrolls' puzzle pieces was made possible after researchers identified scrolls, whose genetic signature indicates that they were made from the same animal or from genetically close animals, and thus were able to sort the sections into different groups of texts. 

As part of the study, it was discovered that the scrolls, written using the typical method of Qumran cave reporters, are genetically related to each other and different from other sections found in the same Qumran caves. From this it is possible to learn about the openness of Jewish society during the Second Temple period with regard to various scriptural texts. The findings reinforce the notion that for the Jews the main thing was the interpretation of the text and its meaning, not the exact wording or spelling of the Bible. 

The research team, led by Prof. Oded Rakvi of the Faculty of Life Sciences, and Prof. Noam Mizrahi of the Biblical Department, deciphered the DNA of the animals, on which fragments of scrolls from the Judean Desert were written, and used genetic analysis of the animals to link the remains.

"There are many pieces of scrolls that are unclear how to connect, and if you connect the wrong bits, it can dramatically change the meaning of each scroll," explains one of the study's leaders, Prof. Rakabi, "Assuming that remains produced from the same sheep belong to the same scroll. Connect pieces to the puzzle. "

The groundbreaking, seven-year study sheds new light on the scrolls from the Judean Desert caves, including passages containing the earliest copies of the Bible books. Pnina Shore, founder of the Judean Desert Scroll Unit in the Israel Antiquities Authority: "The possibilities inherent in early DNA testing in the skins of the scrolls stir the imagination. Scientific and technological advances today allow the physical intervention of the scrolls to be minimized, and on the other hand, enhances their research capabilities. " 

In light of the complexity of the researchers, highly sensitive methods have been developed to extract information from ancient animal DNA. A team from the IAA scroll unit provided samples, sometimes only dust, that carefully scraped from the back of the cards. 

Prof. Rakabi said one of the most significant discoveries was found when two parchment pieces were written on cowhide: "Two specimens found to be a cow belong to two sections of Jeremiah, and previously thought that one of these sections should be attached to another scroll, which we found to be made of sheepskin. The mismatch between the animals refuted this possibility. " "

Beyond that, cows need a lot of grass and water, so it is very likely that cow skin does not form in a desert area, but has been brought to Qumran caves from elsewhere. This finding is of crucial importance, as fragments of the Book of Jeremiah violated separated pages belong to scrolls that reflect different Jeremiah Book formulas, which are also different from the Bible text we know.