Cave of Letters
31°25′57″N 35°20′34″E / 31.432607°N 35.342913°E
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Bar Kokhba revolt |
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The Cave of Letters (
Geography
The cave is located at the head of Nahal Hever in the Judean Desert, about 40 kilometres (25 mi) south of
History
The cave was discovered by
In the Cave of Letters, archaeologists found Chalcolithic remains from the 4th millennium BCE as well as artifacts from the Roman period. Further exploration of the cave was abandoned because of some boulders obstructing access to other parts of the cave. It was not until 1960, when more documents from the Bar-Kokhba Revolt were sold to scholars in Jordan, that further exploration was approved. On March 23, 1960, four teams set out to explore the caves over a period of two weeks. Yigael Yadin led a team to search the northern side of the ravine at Nahal Hever.
1960 archeological finds
The first finding was of a niche of skulls. Tucked away in a crevice opening were remains of human skeletons, wrapped in textiles and covered in a large mat. One skeleton was covered by a colorful mat and other textiles, while the remains of a child dressed in a tunic were discovered in a leather lined basket. The textiles found were some of the earliest known of the Roman period and were dated around 135. These textiles were of importance in showing the kinds of dyes and the weaving material used. Also of importance was the acquisition of a complete set of clothes worn by Jews of the 1st and 2nd century. Among them were adult-sized mantles, a child's linen tunic, and some un-spun wool dyed purple.
Other finds of archeological significance were samples of
A tied bundle of documents, the Bar-Kokhba letters, was found in a waterskin,[1] next to what were apparently a woman's belongings: wool, cosmetic tools, beads, a perfume flask and a mirror.
Bar-Kokhba letters
Of fifteen letters, most were written in
A letter consisting of four slats of wood tied together with the other papyri was the only one that used the words "
Another letter (P. Yadin 50) concerned the arrest of Eleazar bar Ḥitta: "Shimeon bar Kosiba, to Yehonathan bar Be'ayan, and Masabala bar Shimeon, [my order is] that you will send to me Eleazar, bar Ḥitta, immediately, before the Sabbath". Documents acquired later revealed that Eleazar bar Ḥitta was a wealthy land owner in Ein-Gedi who didn't cooperate with Bar-Kokhba. It goes on to describe what is to be done with his property; wheat and fruit are to be confiscated, the herds should not trample the trees "and as for the spice fields, no one is to get anywhere near it".[3] The force with which the order is given shows how valuable the spice fields in particular were.[4]
Another letter (P. Yadin 57) is a request from Bar-Kokhba to supply the Four species for the feast of Sukkot. The request is unusual, in that it is not addressed to his subordinates Yehonathan and Masabala, but to a third party, whose name is Yehuda bar Menashe.[3] Because of the nature of the request, it has been interpreted as indicating distrust between Bar-Kohkba and his subordinates.
A second letter (P. Yadin 52)
Second exploration in 1961
In the second dig of the Cave of Letters, in a previously explored section of the cave, a well concealed crevice was discovered and in it a number of artifacts were found in a palm basket. These included an empty jewelry box, with a barrel shaped top and a flat bottom that was painted with yellow and red dots,[8] some wooden plates and bowls, and an iron sickle. A pair of woman's sandals was also discovered, one of which was examined by an orthopedic specialist, who judged from the shape of it that the wearer of the sandal must have had a limp. Among the rest of the artifacts discovered were three knives, a frying pan, and a mirror similar to one found the previous year.
Under the basket, a bag held another bundle of documents, that would be known as Babatha’s cache. Still below there was a reed tube and six papyri, next to a leather pouch.
More artifacts were found elsewhere in the cave, including a second coin from the "Freedom of Jerusalem" period, two cooking pots, and a fowling net.[9][10] The net measured 6.5 by 10 meters, with 4 centimetres (1.6 in) wide holes and a drawstring. Another cache was found in a hidden cleft, and in it were six iron keys, known in the Mishnah as "knee" or "elbow" keys, so named because they were shaped to fit through a small opening through the gate and engage the lock on the other side of the gate. The next discovery was of a set of one large glass bowl, and two smaller glass plates, in a palm fiber wrap,[11] as well as two willow baskets and a strip of papyrus with verses 7 and 8 of chapter 20 of the Book of Numbers written in Hebrew - these two verses concern God's commandment to Moses and Ahron to speak to the desert rock so that it produce water.
The documents discovered to be part of the leather pouch dealt with various land transactions, some being dealt with by
The Babatha cache
The Babatha (or Babata) cache contains 35 documents covering a wide range of legal issues, dated between 94 and 132.
One was the deed of a palm grove which contained details of the water rights in it, "one every Sunday, every year, for ever". This particular document goes on to reassure the buyer of his rights and that of his heirs, and contains many legal terms of the time.
The cache also contained Babatha's marriage contract to her second husband Yehudah, as well as a document describing the conditions of a loan of 300 silver denarii to him by her. This document stated that if he refuses payment he would be liable under the law to pay her double the amount and damages. There is also a document where she petitions to become sole guardian of her son Yeshua, orphaned when her first husband died.
Other documents were found concerning the splitting of her husband Yehudah's property between various family members, including his daughter from his other marriage. Other documents were found concerning her second husband's property; the most interesting one is a summons by her, to her husband's other wife. This document is dated 7 July 131, and states, “In the presence of the witness...Babata [daughter of] Shimeon of Maoza summoned Maryam [Mariame] daughter of Be'ayan of En-gedi to come forth together with her and Haterius Nepos the governor wherever he may be present; since you [Miriam] plundered everything in the house of Yehudah son of Eleazar Khthusion, my husband and yours..."
The last document is dated 19 August 132, the year of the Bar-Kohkba Revolt. In this document she uses a form of address, 'Yeshua son of Yeshua my orphan son', that suggests that her previous petition for guardianship of her son might have failed. The document is a receipt, ‘from you on account of aliments and clothing of the said Yeshua my son, six denarii of silver from the first of the month of
References
- ^ a b "The Dead Sea Scrolls - Discovery Sites". Dead Sea Scrolls Digital Library. Retrieved February 13, 2015.
- ^ Philip Reeder (July 1999). "[Cave Map], Expedition to the Cave of Letters, 2000 Season". Retrieved February 13, 2015.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-19-534894-1.
- First Jewish Revolt, when the Romans had to fight for every bush, as the Jews wanted to destroy them.
- ^ Greek Text Archived 2015-02-14 at the Wayback Machine, Papyri.info
- ISBN 978-1-78925-238-5.
- ^ Roman History, 69:13.1. See Cassius Dio, Translation by Earnest Cary. Roman History, book 69, 12.1-14.3. Loeb Classical Library, 9 volumes, Greek texts and facing English translation: Harvard University Press, 1914 thru 1927. Online in LacusCurtius:[1] Archived 2020-03-29 at the Wayback Machine and livius.org:[2] Archived 2016-08-13 at the Wayback Machine. Book scan in Internet Archive:[3].
- ^ "Women's effects". The Israel Museum. Retrieved February 23, 2015.
- ISBN 9783161467196.
- ^ "Object's Name: Key". Antiquities.org. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved February 22, 2015.
- ^ "One glass bowl, two plates, and their wrapping". The Israel Museum. Retrieved February 23, 2015.
Further reading
- The artifacts and papyri were published in three volumes in the series Judean Desert Studies.[1][2][3] All the papyri are serialized as "P.Yadin.." or "5/6Hev..":[4]
- The Finds from the Bar Kokhba Period in the Cave of Letters (1963),
- The Documents from the Bar Kokhba Period in the Cave of Letters: Greek (1989),
- The Documents from the Bar Kokhba Period in the Cave of Letters: Hebrew, Aramaic and Nabatean-Aramaic (2002)
- Yadin, Yigael. Bar-Kokhba: The Rediscovery of the Legendary Hero of the Second Jewish Revolt Against Rome. New York: Random House, 1971 (hardcover, ISBN 0-297-00345-3)
- Freund, Richard A. (2004). Secrets of the Cave of Letters: Rediscovering a Dead Sea Mystery. Amherst, NY: Humanity Books. ISBN 978-1-59102-205-3.
- "Return to the Cave of Letters: What Still Lies Buried?" Biblical Archaeology Review January/February 2001.
- Yadin, Yigael (1971). Bar-Kokhba: The Rediscovery of the Legendary Hero of the Second Jewish Revolt Against Rome. New York: Random House.
External links
- NOVA: Ancient Refuge in the Holy Land
- High resolution photos of the papyri from the Dead Sea Scrolls Digital Library
- Selected Archaeological findings of Nahal Hever (excluding the papyri), from the Israel Antiquities Authority
- Photographs from Yadin's book Bar Kokhba
- Cave of Letters – Bar Kokhba on YouTube
- ISBN 90-04-12889-1.
The Documents from the Bar Kokhba Period in the Cave of Letters: Hebrew, Aramaic and Nabatean-Aramaic Papyri The editio princeps of the Nahal Hever papyri papyri dating from the early 2nd century CE - is in two parts: the Greek papyri ...
- JSTOR 4193283.
- ^ "Checklist". Duke Papyrus Archive.
- ISBN 978-0-8028-6241-9.