The Dead Sea Scrolls Exhibition, currently at the California Science Museum, is much more than just a presentation of the scrolls themselves but also a showing of over 600 ancient artifacts.
These are presented in such a way as to display a march through history as this cradle of civilization moved from barter to the use of coinage and the creation of writing and adoption of a written language.
The scrolls are impressive, with ten selections, many being shown in the U.S. for the first time. Also parts of the oldest known copies of the Bible's Old Testament. We were particularly impressed with the exhibit which showed original sections of the ten commandments. The exhibit includes ten buttons and as you press each one the original wording is displayed with an English translation.
A large circular exhibit displays each scroll and then an English translation, some translations of psalms remarkably unchanged through two millennium except for a word or two.
There is a huge display of pottery of that time with descriptions of how they were used and to what purpose. Another exhibit includes a three ton stone from Jerusalem's Western Wall and limestone capitals from the first temple in the Roman period.
The current exhibition at the California Science Center is the largest of the dead sea scrolls ever mounted outside Israel and created with the Israel Antiquities Authority.
The scrolls on display relate not only to the Hebrew Bible but also present glimpses of a people and their way of life two thousand years ago. Large pottery jars originally stored the scrolls and were hidden in caves stretching along the northwestern shores of the Dead Sea. They were first discovered in 1947 and have been carefully studied and preserved ever since. One exhibit explores the science and technology used to date the original manuscripts, decipher, and preserve them for future generations.
There are also interactive exhibits where the viewer can practice writing in Hebrew and Greek and feel the difference between papyrus and parchment.
The adjacent I MAX theater is currently featuring a movie entitled Jerusalem 3D which takes the viewer high above this crossroads of civilization as well as to the heart of the ancient city.
The Dead Sea Scrolls Exhibition will continue at the California Science Center till September 7, 2015. Advance ticket purchase on-line or by phone is highly recommended and weekend availability limited. The California Science Center is located at 700 Exposition Park Drive in Los Angeles with large adjacent parking lots.
Ticket prices are $26. for adults and $21.25 for seniors. For more information call 213 744-2019 between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. daily. At museum box office there is no guarantee of ticket availability that day. Many days ticket sales are sold out in advance.
The California Science Center is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. General admission is free.
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