Product Description

The oldest Biblical manuscripts in existence, the Dead Sea Scrolls were found in caves near Jerusalem in 1947, only to be kept a tightly held secret for nearly fifty more years, until the Huntington Library unleashed a storm of controversy in 1991 by releasing copies of the Scrolls. In this gripping investigation authors Baigent and Leigh set out to discover how a small coterie of orthodox biblical scholars gained control over the Scrolls, allowing access to no outsiders and issuing a strict "consensus" interpretation. The authors' questions begin in Israel, then lead them to the corridors of the Vatican and into the offices of the Inquistition. With the help of independent scholars, historical research, and careful anaysis of available texts, the authors reveal what was at stake for these orthodox guardians: The Scrolls present startling insights into early Christianity - insights that challenge the Church's version of the "facts." More than just a dramatic expose of the intrigues surrounding these priceless documents, "The Dead Sea Scrolls Deception" presents nothing less than a new, highly significant perspective on Christianity.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1943712 in Books
• Published on: 1993-04-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Dimensions: 1.04 pounds
• Binding: Paperback
• 314 pages

Review
John Leonard "New York Newsday" A wonder of savage detail....The reading of the archaeological, historical and analytic-textual evidence is always ingenious.

From the Publisher
The explosive contents of the Dead Sea Scrolls and how the church consipired to suppress them

From the Back Cover

'A sensational story ... this scandal has gone on for far too long' The Times

The Dead Sea Scrolls were found in caves 20 miles east of Jerusalem between 1947 and 1956. Now Michael Baigent and Richard Leigh, co-authors of The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail, uncover what has been called 'the academic scandal par excellence of the twentieth century': the story of how and why up to three-quarters of the eight hundred ancient Hebrew and Armaic manuscript, hidden for some nineteen centuries, have, until very recently, remained concealed from the world.

Through interviews, historical analysis and a close study of both published and unpublished material, the authors reveal the true cause of the bitter struggle between scholars. These documents disclose nothing less than a new account of the origins of Christianity and an alternative and highly significant version of the New Testament. the Dead Sea Scrolls Deception is the sensational true story behind the religious scandal of the twentieth century.

'If it succeeds in advancing the publications of material from Qumran, it will have achieved genuine good.' Times Literary Supplement

'The damning evidence is all here and it looks pretty conclusive' In Dublin

' It is enough to make anyone curious about the early days of Christanity weep with frustration' Mail on Sunday