Before now, one of the few ways to date the Dead Sea Scrolls was through palaeography (the study of handwriting) and radiocarbon dating. These methods place the age of the scrolls somewhere between the 3rd century B.C.E. and the 2nd century C.E.
But a new AI date-prediction model may provide a more accurate date for the famous Dead Sea Scrolls. After using this new model, called Enoch, researchers have determined that the Dead Sea Scrolls may actually be older than previously thought. The findings, published in PLOS One, also indicate that two biblical scroll fragments date back to the same time as their presumed authors.
AI and the Dead Sea Scrolls
By using radiocarbon dating, palaeography, and a machine learning model, researchers working on the European Research Council project, The Hands That Wrote the Bible, narrowed down the age of the Dead Sea Scrolls to a more precise estimate.
The team combined data from 24 Dead Sea Scrolls and the machine learning model to apply a Bayesian ridge regression method to the scrolls. From there, the team trained the model for date prediction.
Enoch stems from BiNet, an in-house deep neural network that analyzes handwritten ink patterns. Now, Enoch can examine ink at a microscopic level through its curvature (called textural) and character shapes (called allographic). This data can provide analysis that standard palaeography can’t. It can also predict radiocarbon dating results by more or less 30 years.
Read More: AI Revives 2,000-Year-Old Roman Scroll Burned in Mount Vesuvius Eruption
Evaluating the Dates of the Scrolls
Seeing the success of Enoch with the first few tested scrolls, the research team prepared to use it on the rest, nearly 1,000. To start, the team fed images of 135 Dead Sea Scrolls to Enoch and had palaeographers evaluate the dates.
The study results found that the age of the Dead Sea Scrolls was much older than previously thought. The results also changed how researchers looked at the development of two ancient Jewish script styles, Hasmonaean and Herodian. For Hasmonaean script specifically, the researchers think it dates back further than the previously believed 150 B.C.E. and 50 B.C.E.
The team also thinks that the Herodian-type script is also older than previously thought, and that these two script styles have existed together since the late 2nd century B.C.E.
With this new information, we can now get a better look at the intellectual and political developments of the Mediterranean during the Hellenistic and early Roman periods (late 4th century B.C.E. until the 2nd century C.E.). It also provides new insights into the rise of the Hasmonaean dynasty, the development of literacy in Judea, and the emergence of religious groups, such as Christians.
Shifting Textual History
Another finding of the study was that 4QDanielc (4Q114) and 4QQoheleta (4Q109) are the first known fragments of a biblical book that date back to the time of its presumed authors. It is unknown who finished the Book of Daniel, but it would appear that the unknown author associated with these fragments did so in the early 160s B.C.E., according to the results from Enoch.
As for 4QQoheleta (Ecclesiastes), it’s now believed that another anonymous author completed this biblical book during the Hellenistic period (3rd century B.C.E.), rather than King Solomon during the 10th century B.C.E.
Thanks to the results of this study, it’s now possible to get a glimpse at the hands that wrote the Bible.
Read More: What Are the Dead Sea Scrolls and What Do They Prove?
Article Sources
Our writers at Discovermagazine.com use peer-reviewed studies and high-quality sources for our articles, and our editors review for scientific accuracy and editorial standards. Review the sources used below for this article:
A graduate of UW-Whitewater, Monica Cull wrote for several organizations, including one that focused on bees and the natural world, before coming to Discover Magazine. Her current work also appears on her travel blog and Common State Magazine. Her love of science came from watching PBS shows as a kid with her mom and spending too much time binging Doctor Who.
