En-Gedi Scroll
What Was Discovered
A severely carbonized scroll discovered in 1970 by Dan Barag and Ehud Netzer in the burned remains of the Torah Ark at the ancient Ein Gedi synagogue near the Dead Sea, Israel. The scroll appeared as crushed chunks of charcoal — too fragile to physically unroll or even touch. The synagogue was destroyed by fire ca. 600 CE, but radiocarbon dating places the scroll itself at 210-390 CE (89% probability). In 2015, Professor W. Brent Seales of the University of Kentucky used X-ray microtomography (micro-CT scanning) with volumetric 3D segmentation and digital flattening to virtually "unwrap" the scroll without any physical contact. The scan revealed 18 complete lines and 17 partial lines of Hebrew text from the first two chapters of Leviticus (1:1-2:11), matching the medieval Masoretic Text exactly in both consonants and paragraph divisions. This breakthrough demonstrated that micro-CT scanning could read texts inside damaged, unopenable scrolls, and confirmed the remarkable stability of Biblical manuscript transmission across many centuries. The scroll is held by the Israel Antiquities Authority.
Why This Matters
Demonstrates that micro-CT scanning can read texts inside damaged, unopenable scrolls — a revolutionary breakthrough. The text's identity with the Masoretic Text confirms the remarkable stability of biblical manuscript transmission over many centuries.
Acceptance Assessment
Universally Accepted
The CT scanning results and identification of the text as Leviticus 1-2 are universally accepted. Published in Science Advances (2016).
What Scholars Debate
The primary dating question (3rd-4th century for the scroll vs. 6th century for the synagogue destruction) remains somewhat open. The technological achievement is universally praised.