Qumran
Qumran is situated along the shore of the Dead Sea and it’s the ancient settlement of the Jewish sect the Essenes who lived ascetic lifestyle and dealt mainly with rewriting sacred books. The first settlement was built in the seventh century BC, but their end is tied to the great Jewish revolt – 66-70 AD.
The sect believed in the ritual cleansing and considered itself as the forces of light while the corrupt priests in Jerusalem were the sons of darkness. It is assumed that both John the Baptist and Jesus were familiar and perhaps visited and lived among the Essenes.
In the period from 1947 to 1956, after Bedouin shepherd accidentally noticed the jars with scrolls, in eleven caves around Qumran 900 different files written or copied between 250 BC and 68 AD were found. The texts are written in Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek. With its authenticity these writings give a special light to the development of Judaism and early Christianity.
Today, most of the scrolls are kept in the Museum in Jerusalem under special circumstances.
If you want to visit Qumran with an experienced tour guide and find out more about this intriguing and amazing place, look for contact information of Tanya Ben Haim Marcetic in the contact section of the website and make your tour of Israel a unique experience that you’ll never forget!