(Photo By: Hadar Yahav)
By: Rossella Tercatin - March 18, 2021
Hundreds of caves in the Judean Desert are still left to explore, offering a concrete possibility that new biblical texts will emerge, Israel Antiquity Authorities researchers said a day after it unveiled the first such discovery in over 60 years.
“The rescue operation is continuing,” said Dr. Eitan Klein, deputy director of the Unit for the Prevention of Antiquities Looting at the IAA. “So far we have covered some 60% or 70% of the relevant area, which means that we still have about 40 km. of desert left. I believe there is work for another two or three years.”
Conducted by the IAA in cooperation with the Civil Administration’s Archaeology Department, the initiative launched in 2017 employs drones and mountain-climbing equipment to reach remote and inaccessible hollows.
Some 600 caves have already been surveyed and hundreds more are awaiting, Klein explained.
Read More: Jerusalem Post