Google launches Dead Sea Scrolls library

(AP) Israeli authorities say they have put 5,000 fragments of the ancient Dead Sea scrolls online in a partnership with Google.

The digital library launched on Tuesday, with important texts like the Book of Deuteronomy, which includes the Ten Commandments, and a portion of the first chapter of the Book of Genesis, dated to the first century B.C.

It is part of a broader attempt by the custodians of the celebrated manuscripts who were once criticized for allowing them to be monopolized by small circles of scholars to make them broadly available.

Shuka Dorman, director of the Israel Antiquities Authority says: Now, everyone can touch the stroll on-screen around the globe, says

Last year, Google also partnered with the Israel Museum to put five scrolls online.

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Online: www.deadseascrolls.org.il