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Copper Scroll

50

Hebrew year: 3810 (ג׳תת״י)

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The Copper Scroll from Qumran Cave 3, a list of hidden treasures engraved on metal.
The Copper Scroll from Qumran Cave 3, a list of hidden treasures engraved on metal.

Unlike every other Dead Sea Scroll, this text is hammered into copper sheets and lists some sixty-four locations holding caches of gold, silver, and vessels, with quantities implying an implausibly vast treasure. Its Hebrew is closer to Mishnaic than to the other scrolls, and the directions reference landmarks no longer identifiable. Interpretations range from Temple treasure hidden before the Roman destruction to Essene communal holdings to a folkloric composition. Nothing described in it has ever been found, and it remains the single strangest document in the Qumran corpus.

Hebrew year
3810 (ג׳תת״י)
Place
Qumran
Category
Books, scripts & languages
Part of
Roman Rule

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ArcheologyJewish Texts