Today the students of the Salesian Study Centre travelled on the final archeological excursion of the year with a visit to the caves of Murabb't.

Wadi Murabba'at is a ravine cut by a seasonal stream which runs from the Judean desert east of Bethlehem past the Herodium down to theDead Sea 18 km south of Qumran. It was here in caves that Jewish fighters hid out during the Bar Kochba revolt, leaving behind a number of documents including some letters signed by Simon Bar Kochba.  A number of the students ventured into the caves to do some exploring.

Since the discovery from 1947 to 1956 of nearly 900 scrolls in various conditions, mostly written on parchment, with others on papyrus, extensive excavations of the settlement of Qumran have been undertaken. Cisterns, Jewish ritual baths, and cemeteries have been found, along with a dining or assembly room and debris from an upper story alleged by some to have been a scriptorium as well as pottery kilns and a tower.

Many scholars believe the location to have been home to a Jewish sect, the Essenes.  This may have been the group that John the Baptist was asscociated with.    A large cemetery was discovered to the east of the site. While most of the graves contain the remains of males, some females were also discovered, though some burials may be from medieval times of Bedouins.