Daniel Goldshmidt – 2019 Israel Archeology Survey
Israel has been the home of people of many different cultures and beliefs for 1 1/2 million years, the cradle 0f three monotheistic religions. and the birthplace of the Bible This aricletwill cover some of the most recent discoveries of ancient Israel; from prehistoric times – to the beginning of the Byzantine period.
Qesem Caves
Some 400,000 years ago members of a prehistoric Start Up Nation that lived in a cave only 13 kilometers from the present site of Tel Aviv. became uniquely adaptable in recycling of their flint tools.
Studies indicates this was due to major challenges caused by the disappearance of elephants which were previously their main food supply. They were able to survive for 200000 years, based on small mammals, tubers and due to tools, that were designed for specific purposes and made up a very diversified tool kit.
These early inhabitants represent a stage in human evolution significantly different from Homo Erectus and very similar to modern man and Neanderthal.
The findings demonstrate the ingenuity and resourcefulness of these early humans in the Levant that had to adapt to the changing conditions in order survive and thrive.
9000-year-old Mask
An extremely rare find, recovered from thieves, was likely part of the ancestor-worship of humans at the start of the transformation away from a nomadic lifestyle.
Officials investigating the theft were able to trace the mask’s origin to a precise location in the Pnei Hever area of the so uthern Har Hebron region in the Southern west bank.
The mask is made of pinkish-yellow limestone, and may have
been worn by living people as part of rituals surrounding ancestor worship. The stone of the mask has been completely smoothed over and the features are perfect even delineating cheek bones. It has an impressive stone and mouth with distinct teeth. It is believed that it was meant to be worn or attached to an artifact for display , because it has four holes drilled into the edges too enable it to be tied. The change from a nomadic life style to ancient agriculture led to the first cities and a sharp increase in ritual-religious activities.
Biblical Age 1200-332BCE
The emergence of the Israelites in history. The bible relates many of the important events of the period and archeological findings provide a verification and fascinating dimension to these accounts. In the beginning of the period the Israelites lived in small settlements in Samaria and upper Galilee. According to the Bible, the Israelites evolved into a kingdom. After a few decades this kingdom split into two; the Kingdom of Judah in the south, and the Kingdom of Israel to the north. The southern monarchy was small and isolated. It was ruled by the House of David,
Clay Pomegranate from Tabernacle Found in Tel Shiloh
A small ceramic iron age pomegranate dating back to the Mishkan was recently discovered. It appears to fit the biblical description in both shape and size of the pomegranates that were hung on the priest’s coat, but this particular one was made of clay and was perhaps a replica used for display. The pomegranates on the hem of the High Priests garment were made of turquoise, purple, and scarlet wool. The pomegranate is 20mm-long and still had four out of the five prongs intact. Exposing this pomegranate is another proof that Shiloh was a sacred place for the Jewish people in biblical days. Shiloh was the first capital city of Israel and the beginning of the history of the Jewish nation, once they returned from exile in Egypt.
Tiny first temple stone ½ Shekel weight
Straight from the first temple period a rare I/2 shekel stone has been unearthed in Jerusalem. It is inscribed in Hebrew with the word “beka” and was found while sifting dirt from the Western wall.
Mention of the “beka” weight appears twice in the Bible, once in the census and again as the donation brought by pilgrims ascending to the Temple mount.
This particular beka is the only one known that was written in “mirror writing” as the letters are engraved from left to right. Apparently, the seal craftsman got confused when he engraved the inscription and used mirror script as he was used to doing. During first temple times there were no coins so silver ingots were used. Beka stones were used on one side of the scale to weigh the amount of silver ingots.
2000 Year Old Village Uncovered Near Jerusalem
Impressive remains of a Jewish village from the Hasmonean period some 2000 years ago, has been discovered.
The remains of a large wine press, a large burial cave, an olive press, a large ritual bath, a water cistern, and rock quarries were uncovered. However, the most significant finding is an impressive burial site which was sealed ln accordance with Orthodox restrictions.
The current excavation so far has uncovered just a small part of a larger village that existed. The findings indicate that village was agricultural in nature and among other things, produced wine and olive oil, as well as breeding pigeons
Pigeons were an important resource during second temple times not only for the meat and eggs, but were also used as fertilizer, and sacrificial offerings. The village is a rare find in that it reveals in detail what major villages looked like in the second temple period.
First Written Evidence of the Word Jerusalem
The earliest written inscription of the word “Jerusalem” was recently found written in Hebrew on a 2000 year old column drum. The limestone drum that dates back to the Second Temple period on an excavation site near the International convention center in Jerusalem. The words “Hanania son of Dudolos from Jerusalem” was etched on the column which was part of a building that stood in a Jewish potter’s village near the entrance of the Jerusalem some 2000 years ago. Prior to the discovery, the city’s name was written as Yerushalem or Shalem in Hebrew.
RECENT ANNOUNCEMENT: 2,000 Year Old Pilgrimage Road
A new discovery just announced this month by the City of David in Jerusalem will change the way Jews will contact with their past. In 2004 a sewage pipe burst in the middle of the neighborhood of Silwan in southeast Jerusalem. In Israel in most major locations and particularly true of Jerusalem and in any area adjacent to the old city the maintenance crew was accompanied by archeologists.
As the repairs progressed they stumbled upon some long and wide stairs a few dozen meters from where Jewish pilgrims would dip in the Shiloah before beginning the religious ascent to the Temple. This discovery led to another monumental find-the central water drainage channel that served ancient Jerusalem. The channel is the tunnel that visitors to the City of David get to walk thru today, starting at the bottom of the Shiloah and emerging about 45 minutes later next to the Western wall.
This discovery led to discovery of an ancient road now called the Pilgrimage Road dug out beneath the village of Silwan and above the now well-known water channel. This is also the place where Jewish rebels made a final stand against the Roman invaders. The Pilgrimage road goes all the way from the Shiloah pool to the area adjacent to the Western Wall known as Robinsons Arch, where one can still see remnants of the ancient stairway that led into the Temple.
Don’t even think about all the archeological finds being biblical and centered in the Jerusalem area. The truth of the matter is that the land of Israel is strewn with archeological finds in every geographic area from all ages.
Archeology shows Philistines Came from Europe
Skeletons of recently found infants born on the site in Ashkelon indicate that Philistines the enemies of early Israelites came from Europe in the 12th century BCE. Archeologists used state-of-the-art DNA technologies from infants born in the area during the bronze and iron ages around 2,000 to 2,800 years ago and found a substantial proportion of their ancestry was derived from a European population. Bone samples were taken from infant skeletons buried under the floors of Philistine homes, as was the custom during the period.
According to the book of Joshua, the land of the Philistines was in the southwestern Levant comprising the five city-states of Gaza, Ashkelon, Ashdod, Ekron, and Gath from Wadi Gaza in the south to the Yarkon river in the north. The Israelites conflict with the Philistines is well attested in the Bible. Samson slays 1,000 Philistines , and David battles Goliath. These findings prove without a doubt that there is no connection between the ancient Philistines that arrived in 2000 to 2800 BCE and the Palestinians whose ancestors came from the Arabian Peninsula to the land of Israel thousands of years later
New Excavations in Qumran Caves
In the cliffs high above the Dead Sea archeologists chip away with pick axes, to find significant new discoveries to the Dead Sea Scrolls, and attempting to beat antiquity robbers from looting priceless additions
Any of you that have visited the Shrine of the Book part of the Israel Museum, know that the scrolls some more than 2000 years old are one of the most sensational discoveries of the last hundred years. They were first found in 1947 by Bedouins in the Qumran caves area. Recent finds in the area have stirred fresh excitement however, and archeologists are probing higher and deeper than before. Hundreds of caves remain unexcavated. In the last few years archeologists have discovered new pieces of scrolls and parchments on the black market and it prompted them to return to examining the caves. As a result, they have discovered remains of storage jars, though any scrolls they may have held were missing.
Many caves particularly in higher less reachable altitudes do not appear on original surveys of the area. New discoveries could also shed light on the mystery of who authored the scrolls. It is commonly accepted that the original scroll finds originated in 11 caves but it is estimated that there are in excess of 600 in the area.
The Greek and Roman period began with the conquest of the East, including the land of Israel in 332BCE and marks a turning point in the history of the ancient world. Hellenization transformed the cultural, social, and political conventions. This is evident in the inscriptions, as well as the statues and figurines,
1,700-year-old Greek inscription
A unique inscription was recently unearthed at Incense Route city in the Negev. The discovery is the first proof of an ancient trade hub Halutza.
In 300CE when the inscription was etched in stone, the thriving community on the Incense Route, had 8000 settlers at it’s peak. Today the site is almost barren due to intensive looting during the Ottoman period. However, for the past three years, archeologists have been exploiting the site with a large-scale laboratory for testing new technology and techniques to virtually plumb the depths-before breaking ground. Archeologists are using a combination of methodology -old and-new to draw up a complete map of city and chart its 8-meter broad roadways and the structures that flanked them. Halutza was founded in the late 4th century BCE as a station along the incense Road a network of trade routes that stretched some 2000 kilometers from the Arabian Peninsula to the Mediterranean. The Greek inscription was discovered near what appears to be a monumentally large bathhouse that was in use until the 6th century. It is currently being deciphered.
Roman Statues Discovered in Ancient Beit Shean
Two unique Roman statues were recently discovered after a resident from Beit Shean took a stroll north of the old city’s ancient site. The statues are important for understanding late Roman period style, as no two statues from this time period resemble each other.
While walking. the stroller noticed the top of a head of one of the statues and alerted the Authorities Theft Prevention Unit, which quickly arrived at the site and uncovered the statues. They dated the finding to the late Roman-early Byzantine period,(Third to fourth century CE). The statues are made of local limestone, and have distinctive features of clothing and hair. One appears to be the figure of a man with a beard. Such artifacts are usually placed near or inside burial caves, and are intended to be likeness of the deceased.
The Holy Land – Byzantine Period 324-638CE
The period is marked by the presence of three monotheistic religions-Judaism, Christianity, and Islam existing side by side. Churches, mosques, and synagogues, their lamps, chandeliers, and particularly their mosaics and inscriptions reveal the uniqueness of each religion and it’s set of beliefs. The Jewish community also invested enormous resources in their synagogues which had become the main community institution since the destruction of the second Temple. They were used for prayer study and public gatherings. The front of these synagogues were covered in elaborate carved stone, and the floor adorned with colorful mosaics, depicting biblical scenes, as well as secular subjects.
Newly revealed Jewish and secular mosaics
Archeologists excavating a synagogue in the Galilean village of Huqoq have found a multitude of biblical as well as historical mosaics. The scenes vary from well-known religious stories such as Jonah and the Whale,
Mosaic depicting Jonah being swallowed by a fish, Huqoq synagogue.
Huqoq mosaic depicting Noah’s Ark
Pharaoh’s soldiers being sept away by the Red Sea and swallowed up by dozens of fish,
Huqoq mosaic depicting the parting of the Red Sea.
to the pagan zodiac at the floor’s center as well as a portrayal of what may be the first purely historical non-biblical scene in a synagogue-complete with armored elephants.
In another panel the Tower of Babel is being constructed using a wide-variety of mechanisms and pulleys.
Mosaic depicting the building of the Tower of Babel, Huqoq synagogue.
Archeologists have differed on whether the Jews suffered under oppression during the Byzantine era but if they were building these hughe synagogues complete with expensive accutments including mosaics that is clearly not the case.
CONCLUSION
These archeological findings have all been announced in the last year as well as numerous others that I did not feel as significant. You can be assured that that our country will continue to delve into our rich history by excavating our rich archeology in the future. Thankfully Israel and the major archelogy centers throughout the world recognize the value of discovering the historical secrets of our land which was and continues to be a major connection route between east and west.
New exciting archeological announcements continue to be announced almost on a daily basis. It blows the mind and is almost impossible for us to keep current with.
