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Historia
The Dead Sea (ים המלח = Yam HaMelah = in Hebrew “Sea of Salt”) is a body of water nearly 70 km long and 18 km wide, forming the natural border between Israel and Jordan. It was created as a result of the Syrian-African Rift.
Its extremely high salt concentration makes life impossible within its waters, hence the name “Dead Sea” (البŘر الميت Al-Baher Al-Mayt = in Arabic “Dead Sea”).
This is the lowest point on Earth, more than 430 meters below sea level.
Despite its high salt content, table salt is not extracted from the Dead Sea. Instead, potassium is harvested in large quantities from its depths.
On the famous mosaic map found on the floor of the Church of Madaba in Jordan, which depicts Christian sites in Israel, the Dead Sea is illustrated with a boat carrying clay as merchandise, representing the potassium extracted in clay form.
The salt concentration is so high that one can float effortlessly on the surface of the sea. -
The Dead Sea:View of the Dead Sea.
The lowest place on Earth, more than 430 meters below sea level, and also the saltiest sea in the world with over 35% salinity.
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Mount Sodom:A mountain made of salt.
Mount Sodom (הר סדום Har Sdom in Hebrew) is named after the biblical story of Sodom and Gomorrah, cities destroyed for their wickedness. In a conversation with the Patriarch Abraham, God grants permission to rescue Lot, Abraham’s nephew, before the destruction. The condition was to escape without looking back. During the escape, Lot’s wife turns to look at the city and is turned into a pillar of salt.
Today, salt pillars can be seen in the area, and legend says one of them is Lot’s wife. -
Qumran Caves:These caves are where the scrolls were found.
The particular type of stone (Lashon לשון) is sandy and soft, allowing for the formation of natural caves. In the early 1st century, a new type of religious sect emerged, groups who lived in isolation in the Judean Desert caves. One such group was the Essenes, a Jewish sect that lived on the outskirts of Jerusalem and practiced asceticism, avoiding all worldly pleasures.
This may have been the place where they lived and slept in these caves.