The Essenes settled in Qumran in about the first century B.C.
The Ruin of Qumran
The private living quarters of the sect were huts, tents, and caves near the community centre. The centre of the community was found and completely excavated in 1951-1956. The ruins comprise a main building 120 feet long by 90 feet wide, constructed of large, roughly dressed stones. On the north side stood a defence tower which was three storeys high. One long, narrow room served as a dining room in which a pile of ceramic dishes was found. Over a thousand ceramic bowls were found in an adjoining room which was probably the kitchen. The most interesting find was the scriptorium with its benches and writing tables. Two inkstands, one of bronze and another of clay were discovered with dried ink in the former. The compound around the main building comprised a dyees stable, pottery workshop and mill. Seven cisterns filled with rain water channelled from the mountains by an aqueduct, the remains of which can still be seen. East of the settlement lies the cemetery containing some I100 graves.
The Essenes Ruins or Qumran Deadsea scrolls Breadmaking Caves of Qumran