The Archaeology of Qumran and the Dead Sea Scrolls by Jodi Magness

Abstract

Reviewed by: The Archaeology of Qumran and the Dead Sea Scrollsby Jodi Magness Dennis Mizzi jodi magness, The Archaeology of Qumran and the Dead Sea Scrolls( 2nded.; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2021). Pp. xiii + 326. Paper $29.99. This is a second edition of one of the most influential books in the field of Qumran studies. First published in 2002, Jodi Magness's The Archaeology of Qumran and the Dead Sea Scrollsbecame an instant landmark work on the subject (see the review by James R. Davila in CBQ66 [2004] 293–95). It not only made this celebrated, and often controversial(!), [End Page 340]site accessible to a general readership, but also became a must-read for academics seeking an introduction to Qumran. To this day, it remains a standard work and is widely cited by scholars across different fields. Nonetheless, scholarship on Qumran and the Dead Sea Scrolls has developed tremendously in the past two decades. In the intervening years, many new books and countless articles dealing with the archaeology of Qumran and the Scrolls have been published, and three final reports—one on Roland de Vaux's 1951–1956 excavations at Qumran (Jean-Baptiste Humbert, Alain Chambon, and Jolanta Młynarczyk, Khirbet Qumrân et Aïn Feshkha, Vol. 3a: L'archéologie de Qumrân: Reconsidération de l'interprétation; Les installations périphériques de Khirbet Qumrân; Qumran Terracotta Oil Lamps[NTOA Series archaeologica 5a; Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2016]), another on Cave 11Q (Jean-Baptiste Humbert and Marcello Fidanzio, eds., Khirbet Qumrân et Aïn Feshkha, Vol. 4a: Qumrân Cave 11Q: Archaeology and New Scroll Fragments[NTOA Series archaeologica 8a; Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2019]), and the other on Yitzhak Magen and Yuval Peleg's 1994–2004 investigations of the site (Yitzhak Magen and Yuval Peleg, Back to Qumran: Final Report (1993–2004)[JavaServer Pages 18; Jerusalem: Israel Antiquities Authority; Civil Administration of Judea and Samaria, 2018])—have also appeared in print. M. herself has since updated or revised some of her previous conclusions. A second edition of this most important work, therefore, was not only inevitable but highly anticipated. The book's format and structure follow the template of the original. It has the same number of chapters (ten), all of which retain the same title, and bibliographic notes are appended at the end of each one. This keeps the text clean but requires additional work from readers, who have to hunt down certain bibliographic items. The chapters are organized thematically, starting with an introduction on archaeology as a field of study (chap. 1); a summary of early explorations of Qumran, the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, and the early history of research (chap. 2); and an overview of the Scrolls, the sectarian communities they depict, and their relation to Qumran (chap. 3). These are followed by chapters on the site's building(s) and occupation phases (chap. 4); the pottery and architecture (chap. 5); the remains of communal meals, a toilet, and notions of sacred space at Qumran (chap. 6); miqwāʾôt(Jewish ritual baths) (chap. 7); the cemetery and the question of women at the site (chap. 8); and the inhabitants' clothing, their views on the temple tax, and their anti-Hellenizing attitudes (chap. 9). The final chapter goes beyond the site to explore the nearby settlements of ʿEin Feshkha and ʿEin el-Ghuweir and their possible connection to Qumran (chap. 10). Revisions and updates are scattered throughout the book and integrated into the individual chapters. The basic thesis of the first edition remains unchanged. M. mounts a strong and convincing case in favor of seeing Qumran as a sectarian/Essene settlement related to the large collection of scrolls found in the surrounding caves. The corollary is that Qumran presents us with a unique opportunity to bring texts and archaeology into conversation, allowing us to illumine the daily life of the Qumran sectarians in a holistic manner and gain insights that would not otherwise be possible. This is exactly what M. does, and the result is a vivid account of the site's history and its inhabitants' practices, beliefs, and worldview. Apart from updating the...