The Archaeology of Khirbet Qumran
Khirbet Qumran sits atop a marl terrace close to the north-western shoreline of the Dead
Sea. It is a relatively small site, with its most prominent features being a square tower of
at least two stories, and a complex aqueduct and water storage system dissecting what
appear to be largely functional buildings. Significant occupation at the site of Qumran
spans between 150 and 200 years. The site’s first excavator, R. de Vaux, termed the ear-
liest phase Period Ia, and the final phase Period III. The end of what de Vaux termed Pe-
riod II at Qumran is attested by the discovery of first century C.E. Roman arrowheads
around the site, and various signs of violent destruction and conflagration in many of the
structures there.^736 On the basis of numismatic evidence, and the description of the
movements of the Roman army recorded by Josephus, de Vaux decided on the year 68
C.E. for the end of Period II.^737 Even though the earlier periods defined by de Vaux as
Periods Ia and Ib have been adjusted by more recent scholarship, there is general agree-
ment with his dating of the end of Period II.^738
736
J. Magness, The Archaeology of Qumran and the Dead Sea Scrolls (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2002) 61.
A period of relatively minor construction and occupation apparently preceded Period Ia by several centu-
ries, but will not be considered here. Period III, the final phase of occupation by the Roman army in the
second half of the first century CE, also will not be considered, but see J.E. Taylor, "Kh. Qumran in Period
III," Qumran - The Site of the Dead Sea Scrolls: Archaeological Interpretations and Debates: Proceedings
of a Conference Held at Brown University, November 17-19, 2002 (eds K. Galor, J. Humbert, and J. Zan-
genberg; STDJ 57; Leiden: Brill, 2006). 737
See R. de Vaux, Archaeology and the Dead Sea Scrolls, 38. Josephus records that Roman troops trav-
elled from Jericho to the Dead Sea under Vespasian’s command at around the time of Nero’s death in 68
C.E. Before Vespasian returned to Caesarea, fighting in the area had “gone through all the mountainous
country, and all the plain country also” (J.W. 4.490). In addition to this, de Vaux found solid archaeological
evidence to date the end of Period II to this year. He found Jewish coins associated with the end of Period
II, the last of which was minted in 68 CE, while the earliest Roman coins associated with the period imme-
diately after the destruction of the Period II buildings were minted in 67/68 C.E. Thus, de Vaux concludes
that “the evidence of history agrees with that of the coinage... [therefore] it is reasonable to put forward the
hypothesis that the year 68, at which the two numismatic sequences meet, marks the destruction of the