The Dead Sea: Professor Nir Arielli on his new book

The Dead Sea is in trouble.

Currently dropping at a rate of approximately a metre per year, the lake's water level is about 40 metres lower than it was in the mid-1970s.

I wrote this book because I believe the Dead Sea would benefit from renewed international attention. By highlighting the multitude of historical events that have taken place by its shores, and emphasising the significance this small lake has had in terms of religion, trade, warfare and science, I hope to show readers that the Dead Sea is a unique place which should be saved.

I was familiar with many aspects of the long history of the Dead Sea before I started working on this book. However, I was surprised to learn that in the medieval and early modern periods the area north and south of the lake was a major hub for growing and processing sugarcane. In fact, this region was part of a thriving sugarcane industry when the area was under Frankish and, later, Mamluk rule.

Throughout much of its history, the Dead Sea has been associated with salt and sulphur. It was interesting to discover that this very bitter area also once offered some sweetness.

The book pieces together the reasons why, today, the Dead Sea only receives a small fraction of the water that used to reach it in the past. The lake's decline is largely the result of human decisions and actions

It would be nearly impossible to restore the Dead Sea to its level in 1900, but certain steps can be taken to stop it from shrinking any further. If no action will be taken, the irreversible damage will grow, and the fate of the Dead Sea might resemble that of other severely degraded terminal lakes like the Aral Sea.

The book covers a very long timespan and a large variety of topics. It won't surprise me if different readers remember different things.

For some, it might be the story of Babatha, a woman who – along with others – sought refuge in a cave overlooking the Dead Sea in the last days of a Jewish revolt against the Romans in the second century CE.

For others, the story of how ancient date seeds that were discovered in archaeological excavations have been successfully germinated in recent years, creating palms that now bear fruit, might be more memorable.

Others still may focus more on the sections describing the present-day environmental crisis and the current atmosphere of tension and conflict.

I would be happy for readers to take away whatever part of the book that speaks to them most.