Discoveries in the Judaean Desert (DJD) is the official 40-volume publication that serves as the editio princeps for the Dead Sea Scrolls.Lim, Timothy H. (2005) The Dead Sea Scrolls. A Very Short Introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press It is published by Oxford University Press.
Publication details
The international team of scholars, involved in the publishing project, consisted of 106 editors and contributors, and came from North America, Israel, and Europe.Tov, E. The Discoveries in the Judaean Desert Series: History and System of Presentation. Chapter 1 in Emanuel Tov, With Contributions by Martin G. Abegg, Jr, Armin Lange, Ulrike Mittmann-Richert, Stephen J. Pfann, Eibert J. C. Tigchelaar, Eugene Ulrich and Brian Webster. (2002) Discoveries in the Judaean Desert XXXIX: The Texts from The Judaean Desert. Oxford: Clarendon Press The manuscripts included in the series were discovered at the following archeological sites: Wadi Daliyeh, Ketef Jericho, Qumran, Wadi Murabba'at, Wadi Sdeir, Nahal Hever, Nahal Mishmar, and Nahal Se'elim. Approximately 1000 manuscripts were published during the run of the DJD-series. The manuscripts were in Hebrew, Aramaic, Arabic and Greek. The paleographical date of the texts ranged from c.250 BCE to the 11th century CE. Most volumes are written in English; a few volumes are in French. The volumes also covers analyses of archaeological data and archaeological missions. Volume 39 provides an introduction for, and summaries of, the preceding 38 volumes.
Publication history
First wave of publication - Roland de Vaux, P. Benoit O.P
The first wave of publication took place between 1955 and 1982. In this period material from the findings at Qumran was published over seven volumes. Editor-in-chief of the first five volumes was Roland de Vaux. Based on notes provided by de Vaux in 1960 the original team of researchers appear to have consisted of the following eight scholars, in addition to himself: John M. Allegro, M. Baillet, F. M. Cross, C.H. Hunzinger, J.T. Milik, P.W. Skehan, J. Starcky, and John Strugnell.
The first work to appear was the 1955 release of Discoveries in the Judaean Desert, volume 1: Qumran Cave 1, edited by D. Barthélémy and Józef Milik, with contributions by R. de Vaux, G. M. Crowfoot, H. J. Plenderleith, and G. L. Harding. The publication was overseen by the Jordan Department of Antiquities, École Biblique et Archéologique Française and Palestine Archaeological Museum. The volume contained fragments of Biblical and Apocryphal books, as well as fragments of text from the Qumran collective such as the Rule of the Community, the Rule of the Congregation, the Collections of Blessings, the Warfare Scroll and the Songs of Thanksgiving. 1961 saw the publication of Discoveries in the Judaean Desert, volume 2: Les grottes de Murabba ât, edited by J. T. Milik, and R. de Vaux. The volume documented the activities of rebel leader Simon bar Kochba. The volume also established that Mishnaic Hebrew was "the language of the people of Judaea during the Persian and Greco-Roman period".
In the period from 1962 to 1968 the series (spanning vols. 3–4) was, for a limited time, published under the name Discoveries in the Judaean Desert of Jordan. 1962 saw the publication of Discoveries in the Judaean Desert, volume 3: Les ‘petites grottes’ de Qumrân, edited by Maurice Baillet, J. T. Milik, and Roland de Vaux. The volume covered the relationship between manuscripts and pottery, apocryphal and non-biblical texts, and the Copper Scroll. Biblical texts included fragments of Exodus and Kings. Non-Biblical texts included a description of the New Jerusalem and a reworking of the Ezekiel-material. The volume described the cutting of the Copper Scroll and suggested a non-Essene authorship for the scroll. 1965 saw the publication of Discoveries in the Judaean Desert, volume 4: The Psalms Scroll of Qumrân Cave 11 (11QPsa), edited by James A. Sanders. The scroll was unrolled in November 1961, and Sanders presented his manuscript in December 1962. The volume uncovered two types of psalms, canonical and apocryphal. Apocryphal psalms included A Plea for Deliverance, Apostrophe to Zion, Hymn to the Creator, and a small text called David's Composition. 1968 saw the publication of Discoveries in the Judaean Desert, volume 5: Qumrân Cave 4.I (4Q158–4Q186), edited by John M. Allegro with A.A. Anderson. The volume included manuscripts from Qumran cave 4. Among the works were commentaries (pesher texts), a biblical paraphrase, a Florilegium, Testimonia, Catenae (2), Tanhumim, lamentations, and a text titled The Ages of Creation. There were also commentaries on old testament books, such as Isaiah, Hosea, Micah, Nahum, Zephaniah and Psalms. In this period de Vaux was replaced by P. Benoit O.P, who oversaw volumes 6 and 7.
Volume 6 appeared in 1977 and was titled Discoveries in the Judaean Desert, volume 6: Qumrân grotte 4.II: I. Archéologie, II. Tefillin, Mezuzot et Targums (4Q128–4Q157), edited by J.T. Milik. The volume included fragments of biblical texts. The manuscripts had originally been recovered by local tribes, but were offered for sale and bought. 1982 saw the publication of Discoveries in the Judaean Desert, volume 7: Qumrân grotte 4.III (4Q482–4Q520), edited by Maurice Baillet. Baillet was originally not a member of the Cave 4 team, but after joining became known as the "small-fragments expert". The volume consisted of more than 2000 fragments of text. Among the documents uncovered were fragments from the War Scroll and liturgical documents. Among the liturgical titles was Paroles des luminaires, prayers for festivals, Cantiques du Sage, and Prieres quotidiennes. Prieres quotidiennes was a text that revealed the timing of evening and morning prayers.
Interim period - Controversy
This period marked the entrance of Eugene Ulrich. Important editorial work on the biblical scrolls were carried out by Ulrich, who, for a number of years, assumed special responsibility for this task. From 1985, and onwards, Ulrich functioned as chief editor of all the biblical texts from cave 4. In 1985-86 Emanuel Tov and Robert Kraft introduced computerized technology to the DJD-series. The forthcoming Volume 8 was prepared electronically.
Benoit's term as Editor-in-chief ended in 1986. He was replaced by John Strugnell of Harvard Divinity School, who assumed the task of Editor-in-chief as of volume 8. Volume 8 appeared in 1990 and was titled Discoveries in the Judaean Desert, volume 8: The Greek Minor Prophets Scroll from Nah al H ever (8H evXIIgr), edited by R.A Kraft. The volume included the Dead Sea Scroll of the Minor Prophets; Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, and Zecharia. Towards the end of his editorship Strugnell made efforts to enlarge the international team of scholars.
Towards the end of the 1980s, and start of the 1990s, there was some controversy, in the international academic community, surrounding the slow pace of publication. Only eight volumes were published in the period 1955–1990, and it attracted criticism from several commentators. A few explanations for the delay in publication were given. Contributing factors included the lack of funding and scholarly resources.
Reorganization - New international team
Soon after this period of controversy, Emanuel Tov, of Hebrew University in Jerusalem, took over as editor in chief. Under the editorship of Tov, in the early 1990s, the international publishing team was reorganized and enlarged. The reorganization involved support from the Israel Antiquities Authority. During the peak of the publication project, in the 1990s, the international team consisted of ninety-eight scholars. In the ten years leading up to 2001 Dr. Tov and his team issued 28 volumes.
1992 saw the release of Discoveries in the Judaean Desert, volume 9: Qumran Cave 4.IV: Palaeo-Hebrew and Greek Biblical Manuscripts, edited by W. Skehan, E. Ulrich, and J. E. Sanderson. The volume included biblical manuscripts in Paleo-Hebrew and Greek. It was the first official publication of biblical scrolls from cave 4.
1994 saw the release of 3 volumes. Discoveries in the Judaean Desert, volume 10: Qumran Cave 4, V. Miqṣat Ma῾ase ha-Torah, edited by Elisha Qimron and John Strugnell, included a calendar of Sabbaths and holidays, issues of legal interpretation, and a final hortatory section. The manuscript does, according to the editors, throw light upon late Second Temple Judaism. Discoveries in the Judaean Desert, volume 12: Qumran Cave 4.VII: Genesis to Numbers, edited by E. Ulrich, F. M. Cross, and others, contained the first 4 books of the Pentateuch, and marked the start of the publication of scrolls written in Hebrew. It also included 4QExod–Levf, one of the oldest manuscripts of the Qumran findings. The volume also presented the conflicting views of editor Emanuel Tov, who proposed a local-text theory, and editor Frank Moore Cross, who proposed a multiple-text theory.McNamara, Martin. Discoveries in the Judaean Desert, Volume XII, Qumran Cave 4: vii, Genesis to Numbers. Edited by Eugene Ulrich et al. Pp. xv, 272, plates xlix, Oxford, Clarendon Press, 1994, £70.00. Discoveries in the Judaean Desert, Volume XIII, Qumran Cave 4: viii, Parabiblical Texts, Part I. Edited by Harold Attridge et al. Pp. x, 470, plates xliii, Oxford, Clarendon Press, 1994, £80.00. HeyJ XXXVIII (1997), pp. 315–365.Discoveries in the Judaean Desert, volume 13: Qumran Cave 4.VIII: Parabiblical Texts, Part 1, edited by H. Attridge and others, included fragments of Jubilees; Reworked Pentateuch; Prayer of Enosh; ParaKings; Paraphrase of Genesis and Exodus.Endres, John C. Reviewed Work(s): Qumran Cave 4. Volume 8, Parabiblical Texts. Part 1 (DJD 13) by Harold Attridge, Torleif Elgvin, Jozef Milik, Saul Olyan, John Strugnell, Emanuel Tov, James Vanderkam, Sidnie White. The Catholic Biblical Quarterly, Vol. 59, No. 2 (April 1997), pp. 333-335 https://www.jstor.org/stable/43722944 The foreword of Volume 13 announced changes in the publishing plan. Volumes were now to be published according their literary genre.
1995 saw the release of two volumes. Discoveries in the Judaean Desert, volume 14: Qumran Cave 4.IX: Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Kings, edited by E. Ulrich, Frank Moore Cross, and others, included fragments of Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, and Kings. The Qumran texts established a few minor readings that differed from the Masoretic text. Discoveries in the Judaean Desert, volume 19: Qumran Cave 4.XIV, Parabiblical Texts, Part 2, edited by M. Broshi and others, in consultation with James VanderKam, included fragmentary parabiblical texts, such as Tobit; apocryphal compositions of Moses; apocryphal compositions of Jeremia; pseudepigraphical work of Ezekiel; lists of false prophets and nethinim; admonition, discourse, exposition on the flood; Exodus/conquest tradition; the patriarchs; general narratives; unclassified fragments; and a text mentioning Zedekiah.
1996 saw the release of two volumes. Discoveries in the Judaean Desert, volume 18: Qumran Cave 4.XIII: The Damascus Document (4Q266–273), edited by Joseph M. Baumgarten, included the Damascus Document from Cave 4. Among the features of the document is a hortatory admonition, separating the Qumran group from its opponents; as well as internal laws of the Qumran community, indicating a priestly leadership. Discoveries in the Judaean Desert, volume 22: Qumran Cave 4.XVII: Parabiblical Texts, Part 3, edited by G. Brooke and others, in consultation with J. VanderKam, included parabiblical texts such as: Aramaic Levi Document, Testament of Naphtali, Prayer of Nabonidus, apocryphon of Daniel, pseudo-Daniel texts, commentaries on Genesis and Malachi, apocryphon of Joshua, and miscellaneous texts. Apocryphon of Daniel included the famous «Son of God excerpt» (4Q246) that had messianic connotations. The editor, Puech, argued that the text probably referred to Antiochus Epiphanes.