Roland de Vaux
Encyclopedia
Father Roland Guérin de Vaux OP
(17 December 1903 – 10 September 1971) was a French
Dominican
priest who led the Catholic
team that initially worked on the Dead Sea Scrolls
. He was the director of the Ecole Biblique
, a French Catholic Theological School in East Jerusalem
, and he was charged with overseeing research on the scrolls. His team excavated the ancient site of Khirbet Qumran (1951-1956) as well as several caves near Qumran
northwest of the Dead Sea
. The excavations were led by Ibrahim El-Assouli, caretaker of the Palestine Archaeological Museum, or what came to be known as the Rockefeller Museum
in East Jerusalem.
later the same year. From 1934 till his death in 1971 he lived in Jerusalem, first studying at the Ecole Biblique, then teaching various subjects including history and exegesis there. From 1938 to 1953 he was the editor of Revue Biblique
. He became interested in archaeological studies while in Israel, learning as he went from people such as William F. Albright
, Kathleen Kenyon
and Benjamin Mazar
. In 1945 he became the director of the Ecole, a position he held until 1965. In 1956, although not an epigraphist, de Vaux became the editor in chief for the gradual production of the Dead Sea Scrolls, being responsible for the first five volumes of the Discoveries in the Judaean Desert
, the official publication for editions of the scrolls. He continued as editor until his death in 1971.
, the director of the Jordanian Antiquities Department, contacted him in 1949 to investigate a cave near the Dead Sea where some scrolls had been found. By that time he had been director of the Ecole Biblique for four years. The cave later became known in Qumran nomenclature as Cave 1, the first cave to yield texts which became known as the Dead Sea Scrolls.
The first of five seasons of excavations at the nearby Qumran ruins commenced in December 1951. Besides excavating Qumran, de Vaux also did seasons at Wadi Murabba'at
with Lankester Harding in 1952, and at 'Ein Feshkha
, a few kilometres south of Qumran, in 1958, while returning regularly to Tell el-Far'ah (north) from 1946 to 1960.
As de Vaux worked at Qumran and its vicinity more scrolls were found and these discoveries brought a small group of young scholars of Hebrew to work on them. These scholars, some of whom worked on their allotted scrolls for decades, included Józef Milik
, John Marco Allegro
and John Strugnell
.
From 1961 to 1963 he worked with Kathleen Kenyon
in excavations in Jerusalem.
De Vaux chose not to publish a definitive archaeological report for his work at Qumran despite worldwide interest, though he left behind him copious notes, which have been synthesized into a single volume and published in 2003.
("Palestine during the neolithic and chalcolithic periods" and "Palestine in the Early Bronze Age"), de Vaux is famous for the following two works.
In 1959 he gave the Schweich Lectures
at the British Academy
, in which he presented his analysis of the archaeological site of Qumran
. His conclusions included the following:
1) The site of Qumran, besides an early use during the Iron Age, was inhabited from around 135 BCE to some time after 73 CE. This represented three separate periods of occupation, Period I, to the earthquake of 31 BCE, Period II from the reign of Archelaus
, 4 CE, to the destruction at the hands of the Romans at the start of the Jewish War
in 68 CE, and Period III, Roman military occupation until some time before the end of the century.
2) The nearby caves which contained the scrolls were related to the settlement at Qumran, as they both featured similar artefacts.
3) The site was the home of a Jewish sect known as the Essenes
and that the contents of the scrolls often reflect what is known of the Essenes from the ancient Jewish historian, Josephus
.
These lectures were published as Archaeology and the Dead Sea Scrolls.
In his two volume set, Ancient Israel Volume 1: Social Institutions (1958) and Ancient Israel Volume 2: Religious Institutions (1960), de Vaux wrote comprehensively about what archaeology seemed to reveal about Ancient Israel.
, Michael Baigent
and Richard Leigh
heavily criticized de Vaux, describing him as "ruthless, narrow-minded, bigoted and fiercely vindictive," anti-semitic and a fascist
sympathizer. The Dead Sea Scrolls Deception has, in turn, been denounced by scholars as consisting largely of a "pattern of errors and misinformed statements".
Dominican Order
The Order of Preachers , after the 15th century more commonly known as the Dominican Order or Dominicans, is a Catholic religious order founded by Saint Dominic and approved by Pope Honorius III on 22 December 1216 in France...
(17 December 1903 – 10 September 1971) was a French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
Dominican
Dominican Order
The Order of Preachers , after the 15th century more commonly known as the Dominican Order or Dominicans, is a Catholic religious order founded by Saint Dominic and approved by Pope Honorius III on 22 December 1216 in France...
priest who led the Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
team that initially worked on the Dead Sea Scrolls
Dead Sea scrolls
The Dead Sea Scrolls are a collection of 972 texts from the Hebrew Bible and extra-biblical documents found between 1947 and 1956 on the northwest shore of the Dead Sea, from which they derive their name...
. He was the director of the Ecole Biblique
École Biblique
The École Biblique, strictly the École biblique et archéologique française de Jérusalem, is a respected French academic establishment in Jerusalem, founded by Dominicans, and specialising in archaeology and Biblical exegesis.-Foundation:...
, a French Catholic Theological School in East Jerusalem
East Jerusalem
East Jerusalem or Eastern Jerusalem refer to the parts of Jerusalem captured and annexed by Jordan in the 1948 Arab-Israeli War and then captured and annexed by Israel in the 1967 Six-Day War...
, and he was charged with overseeing research on the scrolls. His team excavated the ancient site of Khirbet Qumran (1951-1956) as well as several caves near Qumran
Qumran
Qumran is an archaeological site in the West Bank. It is located on a dry plateau about a mile inland from the northwestern shore of the Dead Sea, near the Israeli settlement and kibbutz of Kalia...
northwest of the Dead Sea
Dead Sea
The Dead Sea , also called the Salt Sea, is a salt lake bordering Jordan to the east and Israel and the West Bank to the west. Its surface and shores are below sea level, the lowest elevation on the Earth's surface. The Dead Sea is deep, the deepest hypersaline lake in the world...
. The excavations were led by Ibrahim El-Assouli, caretaker of the Palestine Archaeological Museum, or what came to be known as the Rockefeller Museum
Rockefeller Museum
The Rockefeller Museum, formerly the Palestine Archaeological Museum, is an archaeological museum located in East Jerusalem that houses a large collection of artifacts unearthed in the excavations conducted in Ottoman Palestine beginning in the late 19th century.The museum is under the management...
in East Jerusalem.
Life
De Vaux was born in Paris in 1903, entered the priesthood in 1929 and became a DominicanDominican Order
The Order of Preachers , after the 15th century more commonly known as the Dominican Order or Dominicans, is a Catholic religious order founded by Saint Dominic and approved by Pope Honorius III on 22 December 1216 in France...
later the same year. From 1934 till his death in 1971 he lived in Jerusalem, first studying at the Ecole Biblique, then teaching various subjects including history and exegesis there. From 1938 to 1953 he was the editor of Revue Biblique
Revue Biblique
Revue Biblique is an academic journal published by a French Dominican order based in Jerusalem. It was founded in 1892 by Pierre Batiffol and Marie-Joseph Lagrange.-External links:* Official Website: * at the Internet Archive...
. He became interested in archaeological studies while in Israel, learning as he went from people such as William F. Albright
William F. Albright
William Foxwell Albright was an American archaeologist, biblical scholar, philologist and expert on ceramics. From the early twentieth century until his death, he was the dean of biblical archaeologists and the universally acknowledged founder of the Biblical archaeology movement...
, Kathleen Kenyon
Kathleen Kenyon
Dame Kathleen Mary Kenyon , was a leading archaeologist of Neolithic culture in the Fertile Crescent. She is best known for her excavations in Jericho in 1952-1958.-Early life:...
and Benjamin Mazar
Benjamin Mazar
Benjamin Mazar was a pioneering Israeli historian, recognized as the "dean" of biblical archaeologists. He shared the national passion for the archaeology of Israel that also attracts considerable international interest due to the region's biblical links...
. In 1945 he became the director of the Ecole, a position he held until 1965. In 1956, although not an epigraphist, de Vaux became the editor in chief for the gradual production of the Dead Sea Scrolls, being responsible for the first five volumes of the Discoveries in the Judaean Desert
Discoveries in the Judaean Desert
Discoveries in the Judaean Desert is the almost complete 40 volume series that serves as the editio princeps for the Dead Sea Scrolls. It is published by Oxford University Press. Volume 39 provides an introduction for, and summaries of, the preceding 38 volumes. Volume 32 is the final book and is...
, the official publication for editions of the scrolls. He continued as editor until his death in 1971.
Archaeology
He had worked on several excavations when Gerald Lankester HardingGerald Lankester Harding
Gerald Lankester Harding was the Director of the Jordanian Department of Antiquities for twenty years. His tenure spanned the period in which the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered and brought to public awareness...
, the director of the Jordanian Antiquities Department, contacted him in 1949 to investigate a cave near the Dead Sea where some scrolls had been found. By that time he had been director of the Ecole Biblique for four years. The cave later became known in Qumran nomenclature as Cave 1, the first cave to yield texts which became known as the Dead Sea Scrolls.
The first of five seasons of excavations at the nearby Qumran ruins commenced in December 1951. Besides excavating Qumran, de Vaux also did seasons at Wadi Murabba'at
Wadi Murabba'at
Wadi Murabba'at, also known as Nahal Darga, is a ravine cut by a seasonal stream which runs from the Judean desert east of Bethlehem past the Herodium down to the Dead Sea 18 km south of Khirbet Qumran...
with Lankester Harding in 1952, and at 'Ein Feshkha
Ein Feshkha
Ein Feshkha is a nature reserve and archaeological site on the northwestern shore of the Dead Sea, about three kilometers south of Qumran in the nation of Israel. It is named for a spring of brackish water in the area...
, a few kilometres south of Qumran, in 1958, while returning regularly to Tell el-Far'ah (north) from 1946 to 1960.
As de Vaux worked at Qumran and its vicinity more scrolls were found and these discoveries brought a small group of young scholars of Hebrew to work on them. These scholars, some of whom worked on their allotted scrolls for decades, included Józef Milik
Józef Milik
Józef Tadeusz Milik was a Polish biblical scholar and a former Catholic priest. Fluent in Polish, Russian, Italian, French, German, and English plus many ancient languages Hebrew, Greek, Latin, Aramaic, Syriac, Old Church Slavonic, Arabic, Georgian, Ugaritic, Akkadian, Sumerian, Egyptian, and...
, John Marco Allegro
John Marco Allegro
John Marco Allegro was a scholar who challenged orthodox views of the Dead Sea Scrolls, the Bible and the history of religion, with books that attracted popular attention and scholarly derision....
and John Strugnell
John Strugnell
John Strugnell, was born in Barnet, Hertfordshire, UK. At the age of 23 he became the youngest member of the team of scholars led by Roland de Vaux, formed in 1954 to edit the Dead Sea Scrolls in Jerusalem...
.
From 1961 to 1963 he worked with Kathleen Kenyon
Kathleen Kenyon
Dame Kathleen Mary Kenyon , was a leading archaeologist of Neolithic culture in the Fertile Crescent. She is best known for her excavations in Jericho in 1952-1958.-Early life:...
in excavations in Jerusalem.
De Vaux chose not to publish a definitive archaeological report for his work at Qumran despite worldwide interest, though he left behind him copious notes, which have been synthesized into a single volume and published in 2003.
Writings
Beside contributing many articles for the Revue Biblique while he was editor and two chapters for the first volume of the Cambridge Ancient HistoryCambridge Ancient History
The Cambridge Ancient History is a comprehensive ancient history in fourteen volumes, spanning Prehistory to Late Antiquity, published by Cambridge University Press. The first series, of twelve volumes, was planned by J. B. Bury and published between 1924 and 1939. A second series, revising and...
("Palestine during the neolithic and chalcolithic periods" and "Palestine in the Early Bronze Age"), de Vaux is famous for the following two works.
Archaeology and the Dead Sea Scrolls
In 1959 he gave the Schweich Lectures
Schweich Lectures on Biblical Archaeology
The Schweich Lectures on Biblical Archaeology are a series of lectures delivered and published under the auspices of the British Academy. The Leopold Schweich Trust Fund, set up in 1907, was a gift from Miss Constance Schweich in memory of her father...
at the British Academy
British Academy
The British Academy is the United Kingdom's national body for the humanities and the social sciences. Its purpose is to inspire, recognise and support excellence in the humanities and social sciences, throughout the UK and internationally, and to champion their role and value.It receives an annual...
, in which he presented his analysis of the archaeological site of Qumran
Qumran
Qumran is an archaeological site in the West Bank. It is located on a dry plateau about a mile inland from the northwestern shore of the Dead Sea, near the Israeli settlement and kibbutz of Kalia...
. His conclusions included the following:
1) The site of Qumran, besides an early use during the Iron Age, was inhabited from around 135 BCE to some time after 73 CE. This represented three separate periods of occupation, Period I, to the earthquake of 31 BCE, Period II from the reign of Archelaus
Herod Archelaus
Herod Archelaus was the ethnarch of Samaria, Judea, and Idumea from 4 BC to 6 AD. He was the son of Herod the Great and Malthace the Samaritan, the brother of Herod Antipas, and the half-brother of Herod Philip I....
, 4 CE, to the destruction at the hands of the Romans at the start of the Jewish War
First Jewish-Roman War
The First Jewish–Roman War , sometimes called The Great Revolt , was the first of three major rebellions by the Jews of Judaea Province , against the Roman Empire...
in 68 CE, and Period III, Roman military occupation until some time before the end of the century.
2) The nearby caves which contained the scrolls were related to the settlement at Qumran, as they both featured similar artefacts.
3) The site was the home of a Jewish sect known as the Essenes
Essenes
The Essenes were a Jewish sect that flourished from the 2nd century BCE to the 1st century CE which some scholars claim seceded from the Zadokite priests...
and that the contents of the scrolls often reflect what is known of the Essenes from the ancient Jewish historian, Josephus
Josephus
Titus Flavius Josephus , also called Joseph ben Matityahu , was a 1st-century Romano-Jewish historian and hagiographer of priestly and royal ancestry who recorded Jewish history, with special emphasis on the 1st century AD and the First Jewish–Roman War, which resulted in the Destruction of...
.
These lectures were published as Archaeology and the Dead Sea Scrolls.
Ancient Israel
In his two volume set, Ancient Israel Volume 1: Social Institutions (1958) and Ancient Israel Volume 2: Religious Institutions (1960), de Vaux wrote comprehensively about what archaeology seemed to reveal about Ancient Israel.
Portrayal in The Dead Sea Scrolls Deception
In their work The Dead Sea Scrolls DeceptionThe Dead Sea Scrolls Deception
The Dead Sea Scrolls Deception is a book of non-fiction by authors Michael Baigent and Richard Leigh. Rejecting the established, peer-reviewed consensus that the Dead Sea scrolls were the work of a marginal Jewish apocalyptic movement, and following primarily the thesis of Robert Eisenman, the...
, Michael Baigent
Michael Baigent
Michael Baigent is an author and speculative theorist who co-wrote a number of books that question mainstream perceptions of history and the life of Jesus. He is best known as co-writer of the book The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail....
and Richard Leigh
Richard Leigh (author)
Richard Harris Leigh was a novelist and short story writer born in New Jersey, USA to a British father and an American mother, who spent most of his life in the UK. Leigh earned a BA from Tufts University, a Master's degree from the University of Chicago, and a Ph.D...
heavily criticized de Vaux, describing him as "ruthless, narrow-minded, bigoted and fiercely vindictive," anti-semitic and a fascist
Fascism
Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood...
sympathizer. The Dead Sea Scrolls Deception has, in turn, been denounced by scholars as consisting largely of a "pattern of errors and misinformed statements".