6. Animal Remains From Khirbet Qumran: A Case Study Of Two Bones (QUM 392 And 393) From Two Bone Burials

Abstract

Two animal bones from the so-called 'Bone Burials' are submitted to DNA to be used as genetic markers to identify the animal whose bones were buried. The second aim of this chapter is to try to link the ancient DNA (aDNA) to the animals whose hide served the manufacture of parchment for the Dead Sea scrolls. New excavations, on the southern plateau of Khirbet Qumran, carried out by Randall Price and Oren Gutfeld exposed deposits of animal bones buried within pots or beneath pottery shards. The goal of the chapter is to conduct a preliminary genetic study on two bones sampled directly from two piles of bones and shards excavated by Price and Gutfeld in 2006. In order to determine the animal species we used also our Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) assay of the Coat color Melanocortin receptor 1 (MC1R) gene. Keywords: animal bones; Dead Sea scrolls; DNA; Khirbet Qumran; single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP)