On the second day of his Middle East tour, U.S. President Barack Obama visited the Israel Museum in Jerusalem on Thursday (March 21).<br/> <br />At the facility, he viewed the Dead Sea Scrolls - ancient Jewish parchments discovered in the West Bank in the 1940s which include secular text dating from the third century BC to the first century AD.<br/> <br />For many years, only a small number of scholars were allowed to view the fragments of the scrolls, but access has since been widened.<br/> <br />A few large pieces of scroll remain on permanent display at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem.<br/> <br />After viewing the scrolls, Obama visited a technology exposition. Later he will travel tot he West Bank for talks with Palestinian leaders.
