by Jan Gunneweg, Emeritus at Institute of Archaeology/Archaeometry, Hebrew University of Jerusalem
In the Orientalische Literaturzeitung 105 (2010) pp.510-513, Armin Lange from Vienna wrote a Review (Rezension) concerning "Khirbet Qumran and ‘Ain Feshkha, Studies in Anthropology, Physics and Chemistry", Volume II, edited by Humbert, J-B and Jan Gunneweg, (2003), Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht. (Hereafter referred to as Volume II).
Some clarification is warranted that has not been mentioned in Lange’s Review and will be accompanied by the necessary comments on incertitudes and misreadings of what the purpose of this Qumran Volume II was and who and why several scholars participated, whereas others not.
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Concerning the editors: First, J-B Humbert is a biblical scholar and archaeologist, whereas J. Gunneweg is a biblical scholar (Drs at PIB, Rome), and archaeologist (HU), as well as an archaeometrist (PhD at HU Jerusalem) who deals with nuclear and synchrotron analyses for 38 years and 10 years respectively. It is this rare combination of Humanities and Exact Sciences that was the impetus to start a research on Qumran during the years 1997-2012. Qumran Volume II is just the first of a series of three published books that one can find in the references hereunder.
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Initially, Gunneweg was asked to write a chapter on Qumran pottery technology and his answer was that one cannot do so if one does not know the date of pottery—when it was made--and the place where it has been made This was solved by submitting Qumran pottery to neutron activation analysis, hence NAA. Gunneweg's goal was to show with who the Qumranites had been in contact through exchange of pottery.
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Gunneweg then analyzed also Qumran and ‘Ain Feshkha ostraca to get a picture where the shards came from. Once we knew the origin of the ostraca, Humbert asked Lemaire of the Sorbonne to translate the fragmented texts.
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Paralel to this, Gunneweg started in 2001 a large study on textiles to identify the fibers and the pigments used to dye them, by means of analytical techniques that were executed in the European Community COST Actions G-8 and D-42 where Gunneweg represented the State of Israel. The Daresbury and the Grenoble Synchrotron facilities eagerly collaborated to get the answers.
At the same time, the textiles and a few fragments of the Dead Sea scrolls were analyzed by radiocarbon dating (C14) isotope analysis, but the results were not ready when Volume II went to press, end 2002. The C14 dates, however, were published in 2006, see "Bio- and Material Cultures at Qumran" in the references. -
Looking at the bigger picture, Gunneweg decided to include also research of the plaster of the Qumran cisterns and of the Ecole Biblique collection of human bones excavated by de Vaux in the early 1950s.
By the beginning of 2002, Volume II contained about 2/3 of scientific data covering two-thirds of the volume, but we had to wait for a full year until the English manuscripts of the French collaborators were re-translated from English into French because of France-based language politics. -
DNA analyses classified by Lange as “missing” were never intended to be included in Volume II since Woodward et al. had just published DNA data in 1998. Also “missing” Radar Imaging data, mentioned by Lange were not included because also they had been published five years prior to our book of 2003.
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The German skeleton collection was excluded because those would be dealt with in the Brill edition of the Brown University Qumran meeting in 2002, which appeared as book by Galore et al. in 2006.
Besides that, one can imagine what would have happened if the German-based Qumran bones would have been studied at Jerusalem with its known fanatic ultra-orthodoxy in these matters.
Furthermore, the find of a female skeleton in the Qumran cemetery was also already solved by the presence of Bedouin graves in E-W direction, men and women, who were buried at Qumran in the very same sectarian cemetery accompanied with their jewelry.
Qumran coin research (Numismatics), also mentioned by Lange as “missing”, was performed by the Franciscan Biblical School in Jerusalem, whereas, long ago, the coins have been returned to Jordan. -
Lange’s objection why we did not make use of J. Magness “Debating Qumran” for its archaeological setting is easily explained, because Magness’ book appeared in 2004, 2 years AFTER the finishing of Volume II, which went—as already mentioned-- to press in 2002.
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The fact that archaeologists such as Magness, Broshi, Meiers, the late Eshel and the late Netzer and still others are not mentioned in Volume II is that we intended to separate the scrolls from the archaeology, since many of the abovementioned scholars have used the texts to prove the archaeology and, in turn, the archaeological finds to prove the manuscripts, something that in our opinion is circular reasoning since the three units at Qumran consisting of the caves with manuscripts, the settlement itself and the cemetery were 'assumed’ to be of the same era, whereas WE—in science-- had first to prove that statement.
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Lange’s postulated link (his “Verknuepfung”) by the aforementioned scholars is therefore not in place, since it is based on circumstantial evidence. Epigraphy and textual exegesis must go hand in hand with hard science to show their very basis of existence, something that I have called trans-disciplinary research as published in each of our 2003, 2006 and 2010 publications (see under ‘references’).
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Furthermore, I do not see any excuse for Lange’s “Die engenraumlichen Grenzen einer Rezension…” (p. 512) since he spent 53 lines to provide an index of the contents that perhaps could have been better spent on a Review of Belis’ Textiles and our Synchrotron Radiation data that were (alas) in French.
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Although Lange, sees somewhere some positive data, as he says, he blames the publisher “…sondern richtet sich an die Herausgeber “ (p.512) that certain of Lange’s topics were not dealt with.
Our answer is: No!, WE in Jerusalem decided the topics and no one did that for us elsewhere.- Last, but not least, I humbly feel that it is not Lange’s task to express an opinion on the expertise of certain collaborators whom Lange mentions by name, for example: “Doudna verfuegt ueber keine archaeologische oder naturwisschenschaftliche Reputation, und Taylor hat sich for diesem Sammelband in ihren Forschungen night zur Geschichte oder Archaeologie der Gemeinschaft und Siedlung von Qumran ausgewiesen” (p 511). Both mentioned scientists worked on dating techniques in Denmark, and in New Zealand’s Waikato’s C-14 dating laboratory, respectively (sic!)
- Last, but not least, I humbly feel that it is not Lange’s task to express an opinion on the expertise of certain collaborators whom Lange mentions by name, for example: “Doudna verfuegt ueber keine archaeologische oder naturwisschenschaftliche Reputation, und Taylor hat sich for diesem Sammelband in ihren Forschungen night zur Geschichte oder Archaeologie der Gemeinschaft und Siedlung von Qumran ausgewiesen” (p 511). Both mentioned scientists worked on dating techniques in Denmark, and in New Zealand’s Waikato’s C-14 dating laboratory, respectively (sic!)
Since Lange wrote his review in 2010, he had ample time to have a look in our 2006 book on Qumran where most of his "missing stuff", mentioned above is treated.The 2010 book on Qumran elaborates even more and the coming E-Book of 2012-13 will top that.
References
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J-B Humbert and J. Gunneweg 2003, Khirbet Qumran and ‘Ain Feshkha, Studies in Anthropology, Physics and Chemistry, Volume II, (2003), (Gottingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, University Press, Fribourg Suisse
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Gunneweg, J., Greenblatt, C. and Adriaens, A. 2006, Bio-Culture and Material Culture at Qumran - Papers from a Cost Action G8 working group meeting held in Jerusalem, Israel on 22-23 May 2005, Fraunhofer IRB Verlag, Stuttgart
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Gunneweg, J., Adriaens, A and Dik, J. 2010 "Holistic Qumran", Trans-disciplinary research of Qumran and the Dead Sea scrolls, Proceedings of the NIAS-Lorentz Center Qumran Workshop, 21-25 April 2008, (eds), 2010, Brill Leiden-Boston-Koln
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Galor, K.Humbert, J-B. and Zangenberg, J. 2006, Qumran and the Dead Sea scrolls, Archaeological Interpretations and debates: proceedings of a conference held at Brown University, November 17-19, 2002, Brill, Leiden/Boston