Researchers have discovered that many of the Dead Sea scrolls could be older than previously thought, with some dating back to the time of their original authors. The scrolls were first discovered in the mid-20th century and contain legal documents and parts of the Hebrew Bible, with dates ranging from the third century BCE to the second century CE.
Using artificial intelligence, the team were able to analyze dates of individual scrolls and challenge previous theories about their production. Two different writing styles were found to have coexisted for a longer period than thought and one radiocarbon sample was determined to be older than previously believed.
Radiocarbon dating showed that some scrolls were older than handwriting analysis had suggested. The team used machine learning to build a model called Enoch, named after a biblical figure associated with scientific knowledge. Enoch was trained using digital images of 24 radiocarbon-dated manuscripts and was able to produce accurate ages for most of the new images presented.
Dr. Mladen Popović, the study’s author, said the system has the potential to determine the age of further scrolls without more radiocarbon dating, which requires the destruction of small samples. The study will have a major impact on Qumran studies, according to Professor emerita Joan Taylor of King’s College London, who said that the manuscripts were likely not written at the site of Qumran, which was not occupied until later. However, Dr. Matthew Collins of the University of Chester warned that the study’s findings should be viewed with caution, as radiocarbon dating only gives the age of the parchment and not the date of writing.
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/science/2025/jun/04/many-of-dead-sea-scrolls-may-be-older-that-thought-experts-say
