August 1, 2002
University of Hartford Professor Richard Freund and a team of archeologists working in Qumran, Israel, have announced the discovery of the well-preserved skeleton of a man that dates to the first century A.D. Freund reported that the orientation of the body and its accompanying grave goods suggest that the remains may be that of the "Teacher of Righteousness," the founder of an ancient Jewish sect called the Essenes. Members of this sect are believed by archeologists to be the authors of the Dead Sea Scrolls. Scholars have long thought that this teacher may have been the prophet John the Baptist.
Professors and staff from the University of Wisconsin at Eau Claire and LaCrosse, California State University, and Bar Ilan University joined students from the University of Hartford in Qumran in mid-July to excavate a mausoleum-like structure found in a cemetery near the caves where the Dead Scrolls were discovered in 1947. The remains were uncovered in the same cemetery where, last year, Freund and his team found the skeletons of two women, both more than 2,000 years old.
Freund, who is director of the University of Hartford’s Maurice Greenberg Center for Judaic Studies, said the body was in an unusual burial position as described in the ancient texts of the Essenes, who flourished in Palestine from the second century B.C. to the second century A.D. The sect followed a mystical interpretation of the ancient scriptures, strictly followed Jewish rituals, and compiled an extensive library of religious manuscripts. John the Baptist reportedly was a major figure in this sect, which gathered on the northwest shore of the Dead Sea because its members opposed the religious establishment in Jerusalem at that time.
Freund described the skeleton of the man as complete and in good condition and stated that a sample has been sent out for carbon-dating and DNA testing to further aid in establishing the age and identity of the remains. Freund said he is confident that the first century date will be verified because the excavators found a pottery jar alongside the remains that is clearly from that era.
The expedition has also uncovered three previously unknown caves in the area and developed the first systematic map of the site of all the Dead Sea discoveries, including the cemetery, which they have determined holds some 1,200 graves.
The Qumran site is very close to the caves where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found in 1947.
The University of Hartford’s Qumran Expedition was funded by the John and Carol Merrill Foundation, the Biblical Archaeology Society, Komex International of Calgary, Canada, and the Alpha-Omega Jewish Dental Fraternity of Hartford.
Photographs of the find may be obtained by contacting Christine Dalenta at the University of Hartford’s Hartford Art School, 860-768-4393, after Aug.4.
For more information contact:Richard Freund, director of the Greenberg Center for Judaic Studies
(860) 768-4964
freund@hartford.edu
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