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Copper Scroll (3Q15)

A treasure list engraved on copper, the strangest of the Dead Sea Scrolls

Return, Persia & the Maccabees · manuscript, inscription · Debated · found 1952

Curved strips of green copper with punched Hebrew letters
Photo: na · Public domain · via Wikimedia Commons — Strips of the Copper Scroll on display in Amman.

Found 1952 — Henri de Contenson's team of the Jordanian Department of Antiquities and the École Biblique, 14 March 1952

Where Qumran Cave 3 (West Bank (Palestinian Territories))

Dates from c. 25–100 CE (debated) · Early Roman · Last years of the Second Temple

Now at Jordan Museum, Amman (moved from the Jordan Archaeological Museum in 2013)

How Copper Scroll (3Q15) was found

Found in Cave 3, the only major scroll found by archaeologists rather than Bedouin. Too brittle to unroll, it was cut into 23 strips at Manchester in 1955–56 by H. Wright Baker.

What it is

Two rolls of thin copper sheet, originally one scroll about 2.4 m long, with Hebrew text hammered in with a punch. It lists 64 hiding places of gold, silver, vessels and scrolls, with quantities that would total many tons.

Why it matters for the Bible

Written in a Hebrew close to the later Mishnah, it may be a real inventory of Temple treasure hidden before the Roman siege of 70 CE, or a legend of the hidden vessels like the traditions in 2 Maccabees 2 about Jeremiah hiding the Ark. Landmarks named include the 'Valley of Achor' (Joshua 7) and the 'tomb of Zadok'. No treasure has ever been found, and the scroll shows how Second Temple Jews spoke of the Temple's holy vessels and the geography of Judah.

Debated: The object is genuine. Whether the treasure was real (Allegro, Wolters) or legendary (Milik) remains unresolved.

The Hebrew word: kee-KAHR

כִּכָּר

כִּכָּר is pronounced kee-KAHR and means talent, a weight of silver or gold (the unit throughout the scroll) (Strong's H3603).

Places

Events

Hiding of Temple treasures before the Roman destruction (possible) · Roman siege of Jerusalem, 70 CE

Copper Scroll (3Q15) in Scripture

Joshua 7:24-26 The Valley of Achor, where Achan was stoned, is the first landmark in the Copper Scroll's treasure list. (First mention of Achor.)

2 Kings 25:14-15 The Babylonians carry off the Temple vessels; the scroll may record an attempt to save them from the Romans.

Ezra 8:33-34 Ezra's careful weighing of silver, gold and vessels in the Temple shows the kind of treasury inventory the scroll may echo.

Questions people ask

What is Copper Scroll (3Q15)?
Two rolls of thin copper sheet, originally one scroll about 2.4 m long, with Hebrew text hammered in with a punch. It lists 64 hiding places of gold, silver, vessels and scrolls, with quantities that would total many tons.

When was Copper Scroll (3Q15) discovered?
It was found in 1952 by Henri de Contenson's team of the Jordanian Department of Antiquities and the École Biblique, 14 March 1952, at Qumran Cave 3.

Where is Copper Scroll (3Q15) today?
Jordan Museum, Amman (moved from the Jordan Archaeological Museum in 2013).

Which Bible verses does Copper Scroll (3Q15) relate to?
Joshua 7:24-26, 2 Kings 25:14-15, Ezra 8:33-34.

Is Copper Scroll (3Q15) authentic?
The object is genuine. Whether the treasure was real (Allegro, Wolters) or legendary (Milik) remains unresolved.

Related discoveries

Sources

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