“Balsam Oil of Judah’s Kings Found in Cave Near Dead Sea,” – headline of New York Times, Feb. 16, 1989. The oil, contained in an ordinary, first-century C.E. pottery juglet, was discovered in a cave less than two miles north of Qumran. Some of the oil had hardened near the flask’s mouth and at a small hole in its side, creating seals. In the dark, dry cave, the oil remained preserved for nearly 2,000 years. BAR Sep-Oct 1989.