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Article: At work on the scrolls.(Dead Sea Scrolls)(Brief Article)
- Article from:
- Calliope
- Article date:
- December 1, 2001
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2001 Carus Publishing Co. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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MOST SCROLLS WERE MADE FROM THE HIDES OF COWS, SHEEP, OR GOATS, AND, on occasion, from the skins of deer or gazelle, which was the custom of the time. To make them suitable for writing, skins had to be prepared and treated. The precise process is unknown, but it is certain that they were not "tanned" as leather is. Nor was the process of scraping off certain layers of the skin that is used to create parchment used. Some scholars think the hides were prepared at Ain Feshka near the Dead Sea and that salt and chemicals from the water were used in the process.
Once prepared, the skins were cut and trimmed to form sheets. Scribes readied the sheets for writing by ...