Heikhal HaSefer

Abstract

Detail, glazed brick structure of the dome; It is a a wing of the Israel Museum, which houses the Dead Sea Scrolls (discovered 1947-1956 in 11 caves in and around the Wadi Qumran). The shrine is built as a white dome, covering a structure placed two-thirds below the ground, that is reflected in a pool of water that surrounds it. Across from the white dome is a black basalt wall. The colors and shapes of the building are based on the imagery of the Scroll of the War of the Sons of Light Against the Sons of Darkness; the white dome symbolizes the Sons of Light and the black wall symbolizes the Sons of Darkness. As the fragility of the scrolls makes it impossible to display all on a continuous basis, a system of rotation is used. Source: Wikipedia; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page (accessed 5/3/2011