A Mikveh in the middle of nowhere

This picture shows the Mikveh in the Q27 or the Pool Cave where an excavation is planned for the end of October this year. During the Second Temple period (and at other times) a man could not touch anything sacred without first undergoing the ritual cleansing process prescribed by the priests. It was a very strict rule, and the presence of Sacred items and the need to handle them, can be the only reason for this Mikveh being built up in a cave, in the cliffs 400 meters above the Dead Sea. A man (or woman) must climb up one side of the steps, be completely immersed in water, and then exit from another set of steps without ever touching the dirty steps.

Not only was the cleansing process strictly proscribed, but also the building process had very specific rules too: no metal could be used in its construction because metal may have been used to kill someone. No pottery could be used to make the plaster because that pottery may have ben used in a sacrifice to another God.The water must be part rainwater and part spring water. And there were many more rules, all of which make the presence of the Mikveh, in this very inaccessible place, even more remarkable. It must  have taken a lot of resources and time to build; the temperatures in the desert seldom drop below 40c, the climb is extremely dangerous,water is scarce, carrying building materials is difficult and so on.
Why then is it there? 
This is the question we are hoping to answer when we excavate the cave in the 2012 season. Academia have now accepted that what was previously thought to be a cistern or a pool is, in fact, a Mikveh, and we must build from there.
We want to know what was in this cave that meant a Mikveh was necessary? Scrolls? Temple artefacts? 
Come and join us to find out.

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