Archaeologists discovered the scrolls in the Judean Desert. They also found the world's oldest fully intact basket, a 6,000-year-old mummified child and a cache of rare coins.

A genetic study of the remains of an old cemetery confirms their Mediterranean origin, as the Old Testament says.

It is the earliest extra-biblical source to mention Jerusalem in Hebrew writing. Radiocarbon dating has determined it is from the 7th century BCE.

The cemetery has been found outside the walls of the Israelite port city of Ashkelon. The discovery of more than 200 bodies will reveal many details about how the Philistines lived.