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orion-list Golb on 63 BCE
Golb was here today, in fine form and friendly audience. In the questions
after his big guest lecture this morning I asked him how confident he was
of his 70 CE scenario as opposed to some earlier dating of deposit of the
scrolls such as 63 BCE, and what were his reasons. I asked him to explain
why he was so traditional in following de Vaux and Cross on this point of
the First Revolt dating. (My wording of the question in this way brought at
least one laugh.)
Golb answered the question forthrightly. He said it was not certain,
but he regarded it with very high confidence based on a convergence of
evidence, which is the historian's duty to reconstruct. His reasons were:
(1) the Copper Scroll describes a hiding of wealth from Jerusalem
which fits the First Revolt, and the Mishnaic Hebrew characteristics
make the Copper Scroll too late linguistically to be 1st BCE. The
Mishnaic Hebrew characteristics of 4QMMT are also too late linguistically
to be 1st BCE.
(2) The hiding of texts and phylacteries in the caves around Qumran is
associated with the hiding of wealth of the Copper Scroll, and this fits
the First Revolt as the inhabitants of Jerusalem anticipated a Roman
siege and got valuables out of the city. (Golb suggested many of the
people fleeing Jerusalem who hid phylacteries and texts at Qumran
may have continued in flight on to Machereus.)
(3) The same type of texts that were found at Qumran were found at
Masada, brought there by refugees from Jerusalem at the time of the
First Revolt. This suggests that the texts at Qumran, which are the
same type, are contemporary, also from the First Revolt and from
Jerusalem.
(4) As to why there are no secure post-63 BCE allusions in any of the
Qumran texts, Golb said that was an argument from silence, that we
know of only a fraction of the total number of texts hidden in the caves
in antiquity. Furthermore, the vast majority of texts have no references
of any kind and are undated in this sense. He did indicate the lack of
post-63 BCE references was puzzling and he had no good explanation
for it, but that most likely it was simple accident that only pre-63 BCE
references survive. In his view, such an argument from silence was not
enough to overthrow the sound reasons which converge upon the First
Revolt Jerusalem texts-and-wealth hiding scenario.
Greg Doudna
Copenhagen
For private reply, e-mail to Greg Doudna <gd@teol.ku.dk>
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