
It was the Spring of 1947, when young Muhammed ed Di’b went in search of one of his sheep. The search took him through an area about a mile from the western shore of the Dead Sea. As he climbed around the steep cliff face, he noticed some caves. Instead of inspecting each one for his lamb, he picked up rocks and began tossing them in the cave. Instead of hearing a bleating lamb followed by the rustling of lamb feet, Muhammed heard a crash.

The Bedouin elders inspected these rolls and found them to contain writings of some sort. For a time these scrolls served as interest and boasting rights, similar to a hunter's catch. Somewhere amidst the handling, the scroll was torn in half. This would later become the famous "Isaiah Scroll" of Qumran.
Eventually these scrolls were thought to have value and taken to be sold. The first dealer assessed them to be worthless and likely stolen from a temple. The scrolls moved through the marketplace, where another dealer offered to buy them. Another joined in the conversation and suggested that they take them to Khalil Eskander Shahin, a part-time antiques dealer. The dealer immediately noted their worth, but bought some of the scrolls for about $30.
In time the scrolls would be analyzed and their value discovered. Others would wonder if there were more. This would result in an all out search of the area for more caves, that perhaps might contain more scrolls. In fact, they would find 11 such caves.
Wow! I love your page. So beautifully put together. I'm a homeschooling mom and I'm writing a short course for my kids (in my native language: Afrikaans). Thanks for sharing this story.I am going to tell it to them. They will be able to relate to this young boy who made history without even trying to. xx
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