Scribal Practices and Approaches Reflected in the Texts Found in the Judean Desert, Revised Second Edition

Material Culture and Writing Practices in Modern Research
2. Auflage 2025
ISBN: 978-90-04-74069-3
Verlag: Brill

Buch, Englisch, Band 153, 637 Seiten, Format (B × H): 155 mm x 235 mm

Reihe: Studies on the Texts of the Desert of Judah

This monograph revises the first edition of this book (2004) which is long overdue. Many segments needed revision due in large part to the veritable flood of studies published in the wake of the first edition. In other cases, the author changed his mind in his continued study of the scrolls improved by the new images of the Leon Levy Dead Sea Scrolls Digital Library. Hyperlinks to this library are now added to most references to the scrolls. This book covers many aspects of a handbook for those who study the scrolls, material culture, and edit scroll fragments.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Tov, Emanuel

Fachgebiete

• Geisteswissenschaften Christentum, Christliche Theologie Bibelwissenschaften

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Preface

List of Tables

Abbreviations

Judean Desert Texts

Bibliography 2004–

1 Introduction a Purpose and Nature of the Description b Text Corpora c Sources for the Analysis d Background of the Documents

2 Scribes a Identity, Nature, and Status b Learning Scribal Skills c Production of Scrolls in the Judean Desert? d Characteristic Features of Individual Scribes e Identification of Scribal Hands f Background of Scribal Traditions g Approaches of Scribes to Their Vorlagen h Autographs? i Identification of the Vorlagen of the Judean Desert Scrolls? j Different Levels of Scribal Skills

3 Material Culture: Writing and Writing Materials a Papyrus b Treated Skins c Sheets d Scrolls e Texts Written on Papyrus f Ink g Writing Implements

4 Technical Aspects of Scroll Writing a Ruling, Guide Dots/Strokes b Opisthographs and Palimpsests c Length and Scope of Scrolls d Dimensions of Sheets, Number of Columns per Sheet e Dimensions of Columns and Margins f The Written Text vis-à-vis Horizontal and Vertical Ruling g Conventions Used at the Beginnings and Ends of Scrolls h Titles of Compositions and Headers of Sections i Uneven Surface, Damage, Repair Stitching, and Patching j Deluxe Editions k Relation between Scrolls and Compositions l Scroll Manufacturers and Scribes

5 Writing Practices a Divisions between Words, Small Text Units (Stichs and Verses), Sections, Poetical Units, and Books b Poetic Layout and Superscriptions c Scribal Marks and Procedures d Divine Names: Different Approaches and Writing Procedures in the Qumran Scrolls e Errors f Scribal Intervention Techniques g Mixture of Final and Nonfinal Letters h Notation of Variant Readings and Glosses? i Abbreviations j Consistency k Appendix: Implications for Literary Criticism of Hebrew Scripture

6 Scripts a Square (Jewish) Script b Writing in the Paleo-Hebrew Script and Its Background c Cryptic Scripts d Mixture of Scripts

7 Special Scribal Characteristics of Some Groups of Texts a Scripture Texts b Scripture Texts Written in the Paleo-Hebrew Script c Tefillin and Mezuzot d Texts Written on Papyrus e Texts Written in Greek f Pesharim g Texts Written in Cryptic Scripts h Texts Written in Aramaic

8 Scribal Traditions a Possible Text Groups b Continuation of Scribal Traditions c Possible Influence from Greek Scribal Practices d Scribal Practices Mentioned in Rabbinic Sources

Appendix 1: Characteristic Scribal Features of the Qumran Scribal Practice

Appendix 2: Papyrus Texts from the Judean Desert

Appendix 3: Opisthographs from the Judean Desert

Appendix 4: The Greek Texts from the Judean Desert

Appendix 5: Scribal Features of Early Witnesses of Greek Scripture

Appendix 6: The Texts from Masada

Appendix 7: Scope and Spacing of the Units in the Scripture Text Quoted in the Pesharim

Appendix 8: Some Textual Features of Scripture Manuscripts

Appendix 9: Orthographic and Morphological Features of Texts Written in the Qumran Scribal Practice

Bibliography

Figures

Illustrations

Über Autor(innen)

Emanuel Tov, Ph.D. (1974), Hebrew University, is the J.L. Magnes Professor emeritus of Bible at that university. He has published many monographs on textual criticism, the Septuagint, and the Dead Sea Scrolls, including Textual Criticism of the Hebrew Bible (4th edition, Fortress, 2022).