Where are many scrolls displayed?

The Shrine of the Book in Jerusalem

Dead Sea Scrolls Quiz: Qumran Caves and Ancient Texts

Clay jars in desert caves held the oldest known copies of biblical texts, and this Dead Sea Scrolls quiz explains the discovery and its importance. Play 10 interactive questions on the shepherd's find, Qumran's 11 caves, Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek, their dates, the Great Isaiah Scroll, the Copper Scroll, the Essenes, the Shrine of the Book and online digital images.

Start Dead Sea Scrolls Quiz

🎯 Daily Trivia Challenge • 🧠 10 Questions • ⏱️ 150 Seconds

Question 1 / 10 Time: 150s

Find
Who first found the Dead Sea Scrolls?
Year
Around when were the first scrolls discovered?
Place
Near which site were the scrolls found?
Caves
How many caves at Qumran yielded scrolls?
Languages
In which languages are most scrolls written?
Age
Roughly when were the scrolls written?
Isaiah
Which near-complete scroll is especially famous?
Copper
What does the unusual Copper Scroll list?
Group
Which Jewish group is often linked to the scrolls?
Museum
Where are many scrolls displayed?

Explanations: answer key for all 10 questions

Q1: Who first found the Dead Sea Scrolls?
Answer: A Bedouin shepherd
He was searching for a lost goat.
Q2: Around when were the first scrolls discovered?
Answer: 1946 to 1947
More caves were explored in the 1950s.
Q3: Near which site were the scrolls found?
Answer: Qumran
It lies near the Dead Sea.
Q4: How many caves at Qumran yielded scrolls?
Answer: Eleven
Cave 4 held thousands of fragments.
Q5: In which languages are most scrolls written?
Answer: Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek
Hebrew is most common.
Q6: Roughly when were the scrolls written?
Answer: From about the third century BCE to the first century CE
They are over 2,000 years old.
Q7: Which near-complete scroll is especially famous?
Answer: The Great Isaiah Scroll
It is about 7 meters long.
Q8: What does the unusual Copper Scroll list?
Answer: Hidden treasures
It is engraved on metal.
Q9: Which Jewish group is often linked to the scrolls?
Answer: The Essenes
The link is debated.
Q10: Where are many scrolls displayed?
Answer: The Shrine of the Book in Jerusalem
It is part of the Israel Museum.

Dead Sea Scrolls Quiz – Qumran Caves and Ancient Texts

The first Dead Sea Scrolls were found around 1946 to 1947 by a Bedouin shepherd in a cave at Qumran, near the Dead Sea. Over the next decade, scrolls and fragments were found in eleven caves.

Written mainly in Hebrew, with some in Aramaic and Greek, they date from about the third century BCE to the first century CE and include the oldest known copies of biblical texts. The Great Isaiah Scroll is nearly complete, while the Copper Scroll lists hidden treasures.

Many scholars link the scrolls to the Essenes, a Jewish group, though this is debated. Many are displayed at the Shrine of the Book in the Israel Museum in Jerusalem, and high-resolution images are available online.

What This Quiz Teaches

History fans will enjoy these questions.

How the scrolls were found
Where they came from
What they contain
Who may have written them
Where they are now

Did You Know?

Some scrolls were sold through a newspaper advertisement.
Thousands of fragments had to be pieced together.
Fake scroll fragments have been exposed in museums.
Clay jars helped preserve some scrolls.
The dry desert climate protected them.