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Qumran Caves” in the Iron Age in the Light of the Pottery Evidence

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Qumran Caves” in the Iron Age in the Light of the Pottery Evidence CHAPTER 17 History of the “Qumran Caves” in the Iron Age in the Light of the Pottery Evidence Mariusz Burdajewicz Since the late ‘40s and the beginning of the ‘50s of the last Jerusalem carried out a survey of about 270 sites situated century, the north-eastern part of the Judean Desert has to the north and south of the Qumran site.4 Of the 40 sites been witnessing numerous archaeological surveys and (almost exclusively caves or cavities), where the traces of works (Table 17.1; Fig. 17.1). The main, but not the only one, human presence from various periods were found, only goal of various expeditions sent to the Dead Sea region, few of them yielded the finds pertaining to the Iron Age. was the quest for more and more scrolls. On this occasion, One large bowl and one lamp came from caves GQ 27 and apart from manuscripts, many other artefacts, like pottery GQ 39 respectively.5 Fragments of two vessels dated to the and the so-called small finds,1 have come to light. Their Iron Age II are mentioned as coming from cave GQ 13, and chronology range in date from the Chalcolithic to the a few pottery sherds, possibly dated to the same period, Arab periods. from cave GQ 6.6 The survey was completed in 1956, and The aim of this short paper is to present, on the basis of some additional pottery fragments from the Iron Age pottery evidence, some observations concerning the use were found in cave 11Q (fragments of jars, two lamps and of the caves during the Iron Age II–III. The later part of the rounded juglet)7 and in two caves, A and B, situated near Iron Age II, roughly the 8th–7th/6th centuries BCE, corre- Cave GQ 8 (=3Q).8 sponds with the earliest phase of the settlement at Khirbet Of the ten artificial caves carved in the marl terrace, Qumran itself, represented mainly by pottery finds2 and in the very close vicinity of the settlement, only one (9Q) possibly by some architectural structures.3 Although this yielded material evidence from the Iron Age. It is a single conference is focused on the so-called Qumran caves, we fragment of a bowl, burnished horizontally. The bowl, cannot exclude from our investigation caves which are dated by de Vaux to the 8th–7th centuries BCE,9 rep- more remote from the Wadi, and the ruins of Qumran resents the same type as bowl from cave 27 mentioned itself. Methodological approach, which has been chosen, above (cf. Fig. 4:1).10 requires to perceive the “Qumran caves” in the context of In a survey conducted by Joseph Patrich at the turn of many other caves which pierce the rocky escarpment of 1984 and 1985, Cave XIII/2, which also may be the very the Rift Valley west of the Dead Sea littoral, and not as an same one as that surveyed in 1952 by the QCE (=Cave 37), isolated geographical/cultural phenomenon. was investigated. The excavation yielded an interesting In March 1952 the Qumran Cave Expedition (hereaf- assemblage of objects, including pottery, as well as two ter QCE) from the École Biblique et Archéologique in burials dated to the Iron Age.11 1 See in this volume, Dennis Mizzi. 4 Maurice Baillet, Józef T. Milik, and Roland de Vaux, eds.; Les 2 Mariusz Burdajewicz, “La poterie de l’âge du Fer à Khirbet Qumrân,” ‘petites grottes’ de Qumrân: Exploration de la falaise; Les grottes (forthcoming). 2Q, 3Q, 5Q, 6Q, 7Q à 10Q; Le rouleau de cuivre (DJD 3; Oxford: 3 Roland de Vaux, Archaeology and the Dead Sea Scrolls (The Schweich Clarendon Press, 1962). Lectures 1959; rev. ed.; London: Oxford University Press for the 5 Roland de Vaux, “Archéologie,” in DJD 3:10, 12, Figs. 5.1, 5.3; Pl. 7. British Academy, 1973), 2, Pl. 3. However, de Vaux’s reconstruction of 6 De Vaux, in DJD 3:7–8. the Israelite building has been recently questioned (Jean-Baptiste 7 Roland de Vaux, “Fouilles de Khirbet Qumrân: Rapport prélimi- Humbert, “Arguments en faveur d’une résidence pré-essénienne,” in naire sur les 3e 4e et 5e campagnes,” RB 63 (1956): 574. Fouilles de Khirbet Qumrân et ‘Aïn Feshkha: Études d’anthropologie, de 8 De Vaux, in DJD 3:13, Cave A: “Quelques tessons du Fer II;” Cave physique et de chimie [ed. J.-B. Humbert and J. Gunneweg; Fribourg/ B: “peu de tessons (. .), davantage du Fer II.” Göttingen: Éditions Universitaires/Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 9 De Vaux, in DJD 3:31. 2003], 468). See also Yitzhak Magen and Yuval Peleg, The Qumran 10 I am very grateful to prof. Joan Taylor from the King’s College Excavations 1993–2004: Preliminary Report (JSP 6; Jerusalem: Staff London, for her help in identification of this bowl. Officer of Archaeology, Civil Administration of Judea and Samaria/ 11 Joseph Patrich, “Hideouts in the Judean Wilderness: Jewish Israel Antiquities Authority, 2007), 376–80, 407, Fig. 4. Revolutionaries and Christian Ascetics Sought Shelter and © koninklijke brill nv, leiden, ���7 | doi ��.��63/97890043�6508_0�9 248 BURDAJEWICZ During the same survey, Cave 13 has been identified to Moving to the south, two sites should be mentioned. the north of Cave GQ 8 (=3Q). According to the excavators, The first site is located in Wadi Murabba‘at, about 18 it may have been the same cave which is marked as No. 2 km south of Khirbet Qumran, where four caves were in the French publication. Among the discovered finds investigated by the expedition of the École Biblique et there were rim fragments of two cooking pots, one bowl Archéologique. Caves 1, 2 and 3 contained an unspecified and bowl base, all dated in general to the Iron Age II.12 number of Iron Age pottery sherds. The published finds The survey “Operation Scroll,” carried out on behalf of include fragments of two hole-mouth jars with two (or the Israel Antiquities Authority in the Northern Judean four?) handles, one large bowl and one juglet from Cave 2, Desert,13 brought to light evidence of human presence and only one fragmentary bowl from Cave 1. Cave 3, apart in about 165 caves.14 Artifacts, mainly pottery, dated to from some Iron Age pottery sherds (unpublished), yielded the Iron Age have been found in 16 caves, of which only also other small objects, which could be possibly dated nine are located in the southern part of the surveyed area to the Iron Age.21 Roland de Vaux also published a water (regions X–XIV). Among these caves, six yielded pottery container (decanter) which, already after excavations, was dated in general to the Iron Age; from two caves came evi- found nearby in a hole in the rock, and a very interesting dence from the Iron Age II, while in the other cave the seven-nozzled lamp, which in turn was purchased from finds were assigned to the Iron Age II–III period. Bedouins.22 Very interesting is Cave XII/49,15 which probably was The other site is the “Cave of the Pool,” which was excavated in the past by Roland de Vaux.16 From here examined in the framework of the Expedition to the comes the largest assemblage of the pottery dated to the Judean Desert on behalf of the Israel Exploration Society. Iron Age II–III. The following types are represented: jars, The Iron Age pottery found in the cave is represented by bowls, cooking pots and juglets.17 fragments of a bowl, two cooking pots, lamp, three jugs From Cave XII/56 rim fragments of two jugs dated to (decanters) and juglet. This pottery assemblage is dated Iron Age are reported,18 and from Cave XIII/13 rim frag- by the excavators to the late 7th century BCE.23 ment of a large bowl.19 Also three caves, XI/15, XIV/55 and XIV/56, yielded fragments of Iron Age pottery; unfortu- nately, no details and illustrations have been published.20 1 Discussion of Pottery Types Protection in Cliffside Caves,” BAR 15/5 (1989): 32–42 (34); Robert Pottery is one of the main means that we have at our dis- Eisenman, “The 1988–1922 California State University Dead Sea posal to investigate various topics concerning the history Walking Cave Survey and Radar Ground Scan of the Qumran of the caves. However, the Iron Age material from the Cliffs,” QC 9 (December 2000): 123; Nir Tal and Gershon Oron, caves, with regard to the pottery finds, is not numerous, “Survey and Excavations of Caves along the Fault Escarpment South of Qumran,” ʿAtiqot 41/2 (2002): 189. and the repertoire of ceramic types is quite limited. There 12 Joseph Patrich and Benny Arubas, “A Juglet containing Balsam is also no real Iron Age stratigraphy in the caves, which, in Oil (?) from a Cave near Qumran,” IEJ 39 (1989): 46, Fig. 3:2–5; addition, were re-used and disturbed in the later periods. Joseph Patrich, “Qumran Caves,” ESI 13 (1995): 64; Michel Itah, It means that any analysis of the caves’ chronology, his- Yoni Kam, and Ronny Ben Haim, “Survey and Excavations of tory, etc., has to be based on comparative pottery research. Caves along the Fault Escarpment South of Almog Junction and Inevitably, we must refer to the better known and more West of Qalya,” ʿAtiqot 41/2 (2002): 169–76. abundant pottery assemblages, coming from other sites, 13 Lior Wexler, ed., “Surveys and Excavations of Caves in the particularly from Khirbet Qumran, which is the closest Northern Judean Desert (CNJD)—1993,” Part 1 [Hebrew], Part 2 [English], ʿAtiqot 41 (2002).
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