Alice Hoffman: The Dovekeepers

I was inspired by my first visit to Masada, a spiritual experience so intense and moving I felt as though the lives that had been led there two thousand years earlier were utterly fresh and relevant. The tragic events of the past and the extraordinary sacrifices that were made in this fortress seemed to be present in the pale air. It was as if those who had lived there, and died there, had passed by only hours before.

In the Yigal Yadin Museum at Masada many of the artifacts mentioned in this novel can be found: a tartan fabric belonging to a legionnaire conscripted from Wales; the sandals and hair of a young woman whose remains were found beside a fountain, alongside the skeletons of a young warrior and a boy, with silver scales of armor surrounding them. An amulet in a museum in Wales is the one given to the escaped slave, Wynn, and the incantation bowls, amulets, and spells in the novel can be found in museums in Europe, Israel, and Egypt. The names found on ostraca at Masada — including Yoav, the Man from the Valley, and Ben Ya’ir, the leader of the rebellion — which may have been the lots drawn by the last warriors, are also on display at Masada. Several skeletons were discovered in the cave below the fortress, and although no one can know if Essenes were at Masada, their scrolls have been unearthed there. Magic was a secret endeavor, but as often as possible, I have threaded found archaeological remains into the story of The Dovekeepers

I am indebted not only to Josephus’s account, but to Yigal Yadin, the archaeologist in charge of the Masada project, author of Masada, the courageous story of the excavation of the fortress. Although there are debates regarding the history and archaeological findings, I have always deferred to the initial findings and interpretations at the site.

I have researched The Dovekeepers for many years, but I am not a historian or a religious scholar. As a novelist I worked as best I could within the confines of reality. Although some of the characters are based on historical figures, the stories of women have often gone unwritten, and The Dovekeepers is my attempt to imagine those stories. My hope is that in doing so, I can give voice to those who have remained silent for so long.

I would like to thank my earliest readers, Maggie Stern Terris, Daniel Terris, Pamela Painter, and Sue Standing for their insights and invaluable comments and for their friendship and support during the writing of this book. I would also like to thank my uncle and aunt, Ashley and Harriet Hoffman, early readers as well, for their continuing kindness in both my writing and real lives. Thank you to Mindy Givon, my sister-in-law, for being an early, supportive reader, for traveling through Israel with me, and for being a great friend. Gratitude to the Women’s Studies Research Center at Brandeis for my appointment as a visiting scholar, with special thanks to Shulamit Reinharz, and to my wonderful student researcher, Deborah Thompson.

Thanks to Susan Brown for copyediting that was both meticulous and tolerant. Thank you to Gary Johnson and Julia Kenny at the Markson Thoma agency for their continuing support, and also to Paul Whitlatch at Scribner for help throughout the publication of this book. My thanks to Camille McDuffie for her friendship and for many kindnesses over the course of many books. Gratitude to Joyce Tenneson, whose glorious photograph inspired me as a symbol of the courage and grace of women in the ancient world.

I am indebted to my brother-in-law, Menachem Givon, who was my guide in Israel and whose knowledge was invaluable to me in his thoughtful reading of the manuscript. It would have been impossible for me to have ever researched all that he knew by heart and was kind enough to share with me. I am also deeply indebted to Richard Elliott Friedman, an exceptional writer and scholar, whose wise and careful reading of the book was extremely helpful, and whose brilliant insights into the world of the Bible were both fascinating and invaluable. Thank you both for being generous, patient teachers.

I would especially like to thank Elaine Markson, my extraordinary agent and friend; she believed in this book from the very start, and has always believed in me. Many thanks also to my long-time agent and dear friend Ron Bernstein for his wise counsel over the years. I am grateful beyond words to have worked with Nan Graham as my editor and Susan Moldow as my publisher. They, too, believed in me and in this book and embraced it. In doing so, they changed my fate. Thank you also to Carolyn Reidy for her kindness and support.

I am indebted to my husband, Thomas Martin, who journeyed to the desert with me, despite the sorrows we encountered.

Lastly, my greatest debt is to my mother, Sherry Hoffman, who I miss every day. I hope you forgave me, as I have long ago forgiven you.