Cisterns

View looking west from the center of Qumran at its western section.  In the center is a large circular cistern—one of 8 total in the complex.  These were connected by a series of channels that brought water from the wadi (valley) to the west of Qumran during the winter months when it rained.

In the upper right portion of the image a modern path, following an ancient one, leads to the Wadi Qumran and the cliffs that contained numerous caves that were lived in by the Qumran community.

In the lower left quadrant, the top of a rectangular cistern/ritual bath is visible.

Roland de Vaux, a Dominican father from the Ecole Biblique in Jerusalem, excavated the site in the early 1950s.  A variety of archaeologists have worked at the site since then.

For comments on the site of Qumran and a map Click Here.