Scientists using American space technology have started a huge project to digitally photograph the Dead Sea Scrolls, the oldest known version of the Hebrew Bible, and post it on the Internet for all to see, Israeli authorities said Wednesday.
High-tech cameras using infrared photography are being used to uncover sections of the 2,000-year-old scrolls that have faded over the centuries and become indecipherable, the Israeli Antiquities Authority said.
The only other time these scrolls & fragments have been scientifically photographed in their entirety was in 1950 with an infrared camera. The advanced technology for this new project has been used to image planets and objects in space.
The Dead Sea scrolls contain partial or complete copies every Old Testament book except for Esther, in addition to numerous extra-biblical writings. They are ca. 1,000 years older than any other extant copy of the Old Testament, and have done much to bolster confidence in the fidelity of the Bible text we have.
The article cited above can be found here, with some examples of infrared images. Also read here for more information. The website for the Israel Antiquities Authority has a 5-minute video on the Dead Sea Scrolls.
Photographing ancient manuscripts for online posting is becoming quite fashionable.
Bible, Archaeology, and Travel with Luke Chandler 