AI Dating Revises Dead Sea Scrolls Ages Older

New research using artificial intelligence combined with radiocarbon dating suggests that many of the Dead Sea Scrolls are older than previously thought, offering fresh insights into the origins of these significant ancient manuscripts. Scientists developed a machine-learning model named Enoch trained on handwriting styles from scrolls with known dates, achieving an accuracy of 85% in dating previously undated scrolls. This breakthrough allows historians to better understand the timeline and religious context of the Dead Sea Scrolls and early Christianity. Separately, a remarkable 1,800-year-old mosaic, known as the Megiddo Mosaic and discovered beneath an Israeli prison floor, is being hailed as the greatest religious archaeological find since the Dead Sea Scrolls. The mosaic contains the earliest known inscription proclaiming Jesus as divine and includes some of the first known Christian imagery, shedding light on early Christian beliefs and practices. Currently exhibited at the Museum of the Bible in Washington, DC, the Megiddo Mosaic further enriches the understanding of Christianity's early history.