Dead Sea Scrolls hit Sydney during Olympics

New Zealanders heading for the Olympic Games can delve into some controversial history at the Art Gallery of New South Wales.

The Dead Sea Scrolls, discovered in a cave on the shore of the Dead Sea by Bedouin shepherds in 1947, are on display in the Sydney gallery until October 15.

Questions raised by the scrolls have been subject to intense debate. The scrolls - written in Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek and containing texts that appear in the Hebrew Bible - are believed to have been inscribed by the Essenes, a group who broke away from Judaism to live a communal life in the desert.

The exhibition includes coins as well as textile, stone, and leather artefacts from the Khirbet Qumran site.