Final answer:
Archaeologists believe many ancient scrolls in Israel have decomposed because they were made of papyrus or other organic materials.
Step-by-step explanation:
Archaeologists suspect that there were at least hundreds more scrolls throughout Israel but because they were written on papyrus or other plant-based materials, they have long since decomposed. Carbon-14 dating of the pages from the Dead Sea Scrolls suggests that these were written or copied on paper made from plants that died between 100 BC and AD 50.
The material choice for scrolls heavily influenced their durability. While egyptian scribes used papyrus for record-keeping and some of these have survived in Egypt's dry climate, in regions with more humidity and other degradation conditions, organic materials like papyrus would not preserve well. The Dead Sea Scrolls, some of the most significant archaeological finds, were preserved due in part to the arid conditions in the Qumran area where they were discovered.