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December 30, 2022

Cotton from Prehistoric Pakistan Discovered in Israel

The oldest evidence of the fabric in the Near East.

In the book of Exodus, the various coverings, hangings, and priestly vestments used in the Tabernacle are to be made of wool, linen, goat hair, or animal hide, but the Hebrew Bible likely makes no mention of cotton. Yet researchers recently discovered fibers they believe date to the fifth millennium BCE at the site of an ancient Jordan Valley settlement known as Tel Tsaf. Melanie Lidman writes:

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