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Courtesy Israel Antiquities Authority

KEEPING TABS. Inside Cave 8, one of the residential caves, archaeologists found more than a hundred of these small leather tabs pierced with small holes that were used to fasten and secure rolled up scrolls. The tabs were attached to the edges of scrolls and then leather straps were strung through the holes, allowing the scrolls to be rolled and then bound. The occurrence of so many tabs in a single cave suggests that its occupant may have been responsible for manufacturing, repairing and reattaching the fasteners for the entire scroll collection.