Museum of the Bible (MOTB) deplores illicit actions that threaten objects of material culture and humanity's collective past. This global problem includes the production of modern forgeries designed to deceive and corrupt the historical record for financial gain. MOTB took decisive action when it came to light that the museum’s 16 Dead Sea Scrolls fragments could be counterfeit. Questionable provenance and paleographic concerns launched the need for scientific studies. The fragments in the MOTB Collections, which touted “hearsay” provenance linked to the Kando family and the Qumran site (Cave 4), are now recognized as “forgeries” based on multiple scientific investigations (2017 and 2019) that were initiated and funded by MOTB, the lack of verifiable provenance, and the conclusions of handwriting experts.” To learn more, visit the Museum of the Bible Provenance page.
These studies were conducted to ensure the integrity of the corpus of authentic Dead Sea Scrolls, which are largely housed in the Shrine of the Book in Jerusalem. Below, the images and 3D-microscope videos offer a synopsis of the critical details that caused scientists and scholars to label all 16 MOTB fragments as modern forgeries. Please read and download the full Museum of the Bible Dead Sea Scrolls Research Report.