Experts Determine the Age of 'Dead Sea Scrolls,' Some Date Back to the Original Authors of the Bible

The Dead Sea Scrolls are one of the most significant archaeological discoveries of recent decades. The first set of these scrolls was found in the caves of Qumran at the Judean desert by Bedouin shepherds during the 20th century.  These manuscripts featured a variety of writings, from legal texts to religious teachings. A team of researchers recently analyzed these scrolls using some new techniques and AI, which led to certain eye-opening revelations, stated The Guardian. Findings regarding these examinations were published in the journal PLOS One. 

The examinations suggested that many of the scrolls are possibly much older than what was previously thought. Some of the scrolls, which feature certain Biblical texts, were found to be from the time of their original authors. The team used a combination of AI and radiocarbon dating for their examination.  

The Dead Sea Scrolls consist of around 1,000 manuscripts, according to DW. Some of the manuscripts appear to feature the oldest known copies of texts from the Hebrew Bible. Over the years, the scrolls have had a significant impact on the understanding of Christianity's origin as well as how Judaism developed in a post-biblical world. Before the study, experts had dated these manuscripts by using paleography, a form of analysis that examines ancient handwriting. This method dated the texts back to somewhere between 250 B.C.E. and 100 C.E.

The technique wasn't considered to be reliable because experts faced issues in the investigation of these handwritings, especially in distinguishing the styles of separate authors. In order to have more robust results, the team decided to analyze the texts using a unique AI model and then cross-reference its outcomes with radiocarbon dating.

In the 1990s, radiocarbon dating was done on these manuscripts, however, the results were later considered to be inaccurate, according to GB News. This is because the castor oil applied on the documents in the 1950s was considered to be a contaminating agent that could skew results. For the latest attempt, 30 manuscripts that were found from four different sites were thoroughly cleaned to remove any contamination. Thereafter, radiocarbon dating was commenced, whose results showed that the past assertion was off by a large margin. 

Two manuscripts were revealed to be written later than what was previously believed. Most though were detected to be older than their initial estimates. A manuscript that contains texts from the Book of Daniel was found to have originated during the lifetime of the Prophet Daniel, the author of the book. This implies that it was written in the 6th century B.C., an entire generation before what was previously assumed.  For the AI examination, researchers used a model called Enoch. 

Scientists trained the model to examine handwritten ink-trace patterns, according to The Independent. The model was taught to focus on the style of ink trace, looking into things like the curvature of each character’s shape. The model was eventually able to distinguish between different handwriting styles in the texts.

Based on the data, the AI model conducted paleography to date these texts. The results also confirmed that many scrolls were older than previously believed. This system revealed that documents featuring Jewish scripts called "Hasmonaean" and "Herodian" were from the late second century BC and not mid-first century BC, as previously believed. Researchers were astounded by these developments and believe it changes how scholars perceive the political and intellectual developments that took place in the eastern Mediterranean amidst the Hellenistic and early Roman periods