Tag: Acre

Report from Jerusalem #44, 16th July 2012

Mount Carmel Caves on UNESCO World Heritage List

At its meeting on 29th June at St Petersburg, the World Heritage Committee agreed to place a set of four Carmel caves on its Heritage List. The document read, “The four caves are located in one of the best preserved fossilized reefs of the Mediterranean region, and contain artifacts covering 500,000 years of human evolution, from the Lower Paleolithic era till today”.

They are the Nahal Me’orot caves of Tabun, Jamal, El-Wad and Skhul. The Tabun and other caves were first investigated by Dorothy Garrod in 1929-34 and she found there a complete skeleton of a Neanderthal woman, which was dated from 60,000 to 50,000 BP (before Present). The Jamal cave is a single chamber cave, while El-Wad has an entrance chamber that leads to five others that contain stone house remains and a cemetery with skeleton fragments of a hundred individuals. The listing includes the terraces to the caves that display evidence of artistic activity and agriculture. The caves reflect man’s prehistoric culture and his transformation from hunter-gatherer to agriculturalist that occurred over hundreds of years. The credit for bringing the caves to the attention of UNESCO must go to Prof. Mina Weinstein-Evron of Haifa University, who has been passionate in preserving the evidence of the caves over many years.

Bethlehem Church on UNESCO List

At the same meeting, the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem was also placed on the World Heritage List in the name of the Palestine Authority. The PA claimed that the Church was in danger, but in fact the Church is in fairly good condition, although repairs are needed to the roof. The Greek Orthodox and Armenian Church Patriarchs had opposed the original listing application but the PA has provided written guarantees that it will not intervene in the internal affairs of the site, in particular the “status quo” agreement which defines the full autonomy of the three churches (including the Roman Catholics) in the management of the site.

Early Synagogue to North-West of Sea of Galilee

At Huqoq, a village mentioned in the Jerusalem Talmud, archaeologists Jodi Magness, with David Amit and Shua Kasilevitz of the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA), have found remains of a large synagogue of the late Roman period of the 4th century CE, a time which saw a great increase in synagogue building in the Galilee and the Golan.  The synagogue has a mosaic floor that includes an inscription alongside two faces, one of them destroyed, but the other is female, very graphic and most unusual for a synagogue. There is also a depiction of the story of Samson sending flaming torches tied to the tails of foxes into the fields of Philistine standing corn (Judges 15:4ff), which is again used as a mosaic subject in another recently discovered  synagogue at nearby Wadi Hamam. The richness of the mosaics and the fact that remains of the structure show impressive use of large ashlar stonework is surprising in a small village setting and indicates the affluence of the area, which was watered by a spring, near a trade route, a centre of fertile land and famous for its mustard plants. “I guess mustard was lucrative” said Jodi Magness.

Crusader Coin Trove Found at Apollonia

At Tel Arshaf, on the coast north of Herzliya, in the course of a three-year dig headed by Prof. Oren Tal of Tel Aviv University, a large cache of golden coins of the Crusader period has been uncovered. The coins had been placed in a sand-filled pottery vessel, now broken, under the floor tiles of the castle, and it looked like a deliberate act of concealment, probably made by the defenders during a prolonged siege by Muslim troops. The excavation has also uncovered arrowheads and catapult stones, evidence of the Arab siege. The Crusaders, who called their castle Apollonia, held the stronghold in the 13th century, when it was eventually conquered and razed to the ground by the Mamluks, who failed to check under the floor tiles. The hoard is of 108 gold coins minted around 1,000 CE in Egypt, and is today valued at over $100,000. After cleaning, the hoard will be put on exhibition.

Hellenistic Harbour at Akko (Acre)

During conservation work to the southern sea wall of the modern harbour at Akko, evidence appeared of large well laid and dressed stones as used in many other installations along the Phoenician coast, and may have indicated the base of a large building or the foundation of a port installation. The finding of a series of mooring stones along the quay makes it clear that it was the latter, and thus was evidence for a large port in the Hellenistic period of 300-200 BCE. The stone floor was littered with fragments of pottery vessels from across the Aegean, from ports such as Knidos (W.Turkey) and Rhodes, by which it could be dated. The flooring had a slight slope to the south and was flanked on two sides by walls built in the Phoenician style, which suggests that the floor was the base of a slipway used to haul ships onto the shore, according to Kobi Sharvit, director of the IAA Marine Archaeology Unit. The section of the harbour uncovered so far indicates that it was a military installation, probably the chief naval base of Coele-Syria (Palestine/Israel) that was deliberately attacked and destroyed by enemies of the Seleucid powers, who could have been Egyptian forces under the Ptolemies, or even the Hasmoneans many years later.

Tel Hatzor, Jars of Burnt Wheat

Excavations at Hatzor have been in progress for many years under Prof. Amnon Ben-Tor of Hebrew University and  Dr. Tsvika Tzuk, of the Nature and Parks Authority, who administer the archaeological site. Recently fourteen large pithoi storage jars have been uncovered and found to contain stores of burnt wheat that are dated to the Middle Bronze Age of 2,200 BCE. They were found in the storage room of the monumental building, perhaps a palace, of the Canaanite period. When excavation is complete this season, the jars and contents will be transferred to the IAA laboratories for further investigation and conservation, before being exhibited and then replaced on site.

Commemoration of Petrie’s Death

On the 70th anniversary of the death of Flinders Petrie a special ceremony was held at his graveside in Jerusalem. This report is by Sam Wolff of the IAA, with an addition in brackets by Shimon Gibson.

“On 30 July 2012 an evening gathering was organized by the IAA to commemorate the 70th year of the passing of Sir William Matthew Flinders Petrie, pioneer British archaeologist and Egyptologist. The well-attended event was held in the courtyard of the former Bishop Gorbat School, current Jerusalem University College, on Mt. Zion, metres away from Petrie’s grave, which is located in the Protestant Cemetery alongside other prominent archaeologists and architects like James Starkey, Clarence Fisher, Conrad Schick. After a brief tour of the cemetery and introductory remarks, Gabriel Barkay delivered an appreciation of Petrie’s achievements. This was followed by a brief lecture by Shimon Gibson which, among other items of interest, included a graphic description of his visit to the Royal College of Surgeons in London in order to confirm the identity of a human head preserved in a jar, reputed to be the head of Petrie (who was an advocate of the Eugenics movement and believed that a measure of human intelligence could be based on the measurement of skulls). The evening ended with a screening of a BBC documentary of Petrie’s life and contribution to archaeology, both in Egypt and in Palestine.”

Ancient Pool and Bust at Sussita

At the hilltop Hellenistic site of Sussita, overlooking the east shore of the Sea of Galilee, Prof. Arthur Segal has been leading a team from the University of Haifa for thirteen seasons and recent finds include a bust of an unknown worthy dated to the third century BCE, which the archaeologists think had come from a grave monument. In the last season they have also uncovered the well paved floor remains of an early local swimming pool, but no date has yet been given, This is a surprising find as water supply to the high level town must have been severely restricted.

Restoration to City Walls of Jerusalem Completed

The 4 km. of the ancient city walls of Jerusalem have undergone an eight year programme of repair and restoration under the supervision of Avi Mashiah of the IAA. The National Parks Authority and the Jerusalem Development Authority were also involved in the work and funding came from the Prime Minister’s Office. It is the first time since the British Mandate that the walls as a whole have been surveyed and repaired. The work included restoration of the seven gates of the City and at the Zion Gate nearly 300 bullet holes, dating from 1967, were filled but the evidence left showing for historical accuracy. The work at the Herod and Damascus Gates was carefully co-ordinated with the local Arab traders who have open stalls at these gates, and much of the work was carried out at night so as not to disrupt trade. At the Damascus Gate the original ornamental high-level carvings were restored, at first to the angry protests of the locals, but it was explained that the original stonework was likely to collapse and now local residents and traders are happy to see the new work, and realize that the bright colours of the restoration will soon fade and blend in with the old. The whole of the walls have now been restored except for the portion at the south east corner, which is under the control of the Waqf, the Islamic administrators of the Temple Mount, who are proceeding with their repairs more slowly.

Stephen Gabriel Rosenberg,

W.F. Albright Institute of Archaeological Research, Jerusalem

Report from Jerusalem #39, 14th February 2012

‘Geniza’ Find in Afghanistan

Details of this discovery are still very sketchy but Prof. Shaul Shaked of the Hebrew University has given more information recently. He is skeptical of the many stories of the discovery that are surfacing, as they all revolve around a shepherd who is looking for his flock in a distant cave, fails to find them but sees pieces of parchment scattered over the ground. These stories are clearly based on the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls and so are dismissed as fiction. But, like the Scrolls, there is the hope that further caches will be uncovered as to date only about 150 pieces has come to light.

Prof. Shaked, an expert in ancient Persian languages, has no doubt the finds are authentic and has said that they include a medieval copy of the Book of Jeremiah, previously unknown works by Rabbi Sa’adiah Gaon of the 10th century CE, as well as the private financial diary of a Jewish merchant. The documents are in Judeo-Persian and Judeo-Arabic and can be precisely dated to the medieval period. Many are damaged and decayed and the number is small, but Prof. Shaked hopes that search will now be made for others. He is of the opinion that the cache may include the records of a Karaite community, although it is known that Sa’adiah Gaon was fiercely opposed to this Jewish sect.

Prof. Robert Eisenman has said that he hopes the records may shed light on another sect called the Rhadanites, early medieval Jewish merchants who had set up an extensive trade network connecting Europe and Asia. He raises the suspicion that these Jews may have been descendants of the Ten Lost Tribes, but that is a claim made for all outlandish sects and usually with little justification.

Bread Seal Found at Uza, near Acre

A rescue dig is being conducted at Uza, a Byzantine village east of Acre, prior to the laying of a railway track between Acre and Carmiel. In the course of the dig, headed by Gilad Jaffe and Danny Syon of the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA), a diminutive clay stamp incised with the reverse of a seven-branched menorah was uncovered. The excavators point this out as a bread seal of the type used in the early medieval period and they date it to the 6th century CE. Bread seals of the period are common but mostly carry a figure of a cross and denote Christian ownership. The Menorah, which clearly marks Jewish ownership, is rare, and probably indicates that there was a Jewish bakery at Uza supplying bread to the Jewish community of Acre, which was mainly a Christian town in the Byzantine period. The short handle of the stamp carries some Greek lettering, read by Dr. Leah di Segni of the Hebrew University as “Launtius”, a common Jewish name of the period.

Prehistoric Evaporation of the Dead Sea

Last year researchers from the Geological Survey of Israel, the Hebrew University and Tel Aviv University conducted drilling at the centre of the Dead Sea, at a depth of 300m, and offshore near Ein Gedi, and they found that the Dead Sea had nearly dried up 125,000 years ago due to climate change. At a depth of 250m below the floor of the lake they found levels of pebbles above substantial salt layers and concluded that these demonstrated a period when the lake had nearly dried up, due to little inflow of water. From sediment cores, the scientists discovered a layer of 45m of salt below nearby pebbles, which indicated a shoreline close by. The condition was attributed to a change in climate that occurred thousands of years ago and was ultimately remedied by increased rainfall and flow into the Dead Sea from the river Jordan. The researchers indicated that such a condition of excessive fall could occur again at the present time and the remedy of replenishment did not exist as so much of the waters of the Jordan was being syphoned off by the adjoining countries. They warned that the previous ancient fall had been due to climate change whereas the present drop was a man-made disaster.

Archaeological Survey of Lifta, west of Jerusalem

Since 1948 the Arab village of Lifta, standing outside the western approach to Jerusalem, has stood in ruin and virtually unpopulated except for a few Yemenite families. The area contains dozens of stone-built houses that stand derelict on a piece of prime real estate, and two years ago tenders were issued to private developers to build 212 luxury houses on the former village, on condition that the contractor would conduct a full survey of the existing properties before work could begin. The site contains mainly 19th century houses but there are also some Crusader structures and First Temple remains, all in an advanced state of disrepair.

A recent court ruling has annulled the previous tenders and has now stipulated that the area must first be surveyed in depth by an independent multi-disciplinary university team and the IAA, whose interests will be purely scientific and historical and not guided by development opportunities. However it has been agreed that in the long run it is not desirable to leave the area unbuilt and undeveloped as that would continue the neglect and decay that has taken toll of the site over the last sixty years. It is stipulated therefore that there must be in the long run a plan for both development and preservation of the historical core, with convenient access for the public to the sections of historical interest, so as to provide for example an area that would illustrate the physical form of a typical Arab village of the 19th century. It is hoped that the involvement of many university departments and the IAA will bring positive results and not delay the restoration works unduly.

Stephen Gabriel Rosenberg

W.F. Albright Institute of Archaeological Research, Jerusalem

Report from Jerusalem, #32, 21st June

Bethsaida – Stratum  VII

Excavations at Bethsaida, which lies close to the northern shore of Lake Kinneret in the Galilee, re-started in June of this year. The work there has been conducted under the direction of Professors Rami Arav and Richard Freund for the last 25 years and has uncovered impressive remains of the Iron Age City that may have been the capital of the petty kingdom of Geshur.

Work this season will reach the foundations of the city, Stratum VII, which is currently dated to the middle of 10th century BCE. This is the period of the possible kingdom of David and Solomon, whose existence is doubted by the Tel Aviv School of Archaeologists, in opposition to the biblical account. This is a subject of debate at present and it is hoped that evidence this season from Stratum VII may help to throw light on the problem.

Hebrew University Museum – 70th Anniversary

A special exhibition has been mounted by the Hebrew University Museum of Jewish Antiquities on Mount Scopus to mark its 70th anniversary, having been founded back in the time of Prof Sukenik. Besides many items such as inscriptions, pottery and coins from the well-known excavations sponsored by the university, there are on show ceiling tiles from the Dura-Europos synagogue of the 3rd century CE, whose colourful frescoes are preserved in the National Museum of Damascus, the synagogue having originally been located in what is today Eastern Syria. The ceiling tiles are highly decorated and some of them mention the names of Samuel the Cohen, Abraham the treasurer and Samuel ben Supharah, who were presumably involved in the building of the synagogue.

Acre – Byzantine Structure Uncovered

The recent uncovering of an impressive building in the city of Acre, the ancient port north of Haifa, has prompted the speculation that this might be the remains of a church of the 6th century CE. The building was constructed of ashlar stonework and included a courtyard with a well and terracotta pipework. If they are the  remains of a church, it will be the first one discovered in the city, according to Nurit Feig of the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA), who directed the excavation, and would add weight to the recorded fact that the Bishops of Acre and Caesarea attended international congresses in the city during the Byzantine period. According to Vatican archives an Italian pilgrim visited the churches of Acre in 570 CE, but no other public buildings of the period have so far been discovered in Acre.

The newly excavated building was found to contain a mosaic, roof tiles, pottery and coins. It was founded on a Hellenistic layer that included Rhodian amphorae and locally made pottery. The find cannot yet be opened to the public but will be fenced off and protected by sand and a textile covering while the adjoining mall and car park are completed.

Austrian Hospice –  Salvage Dig

A rescue dig is in progress at the Austrian Hospice, famous for its coffee, cream and Sachertorte, on the Via Dolorosa in the Old City, Jerusalem. The site is close to the triumphal arch built for Hadrian’s visit to Aelia Capitolina in 135 CE, and the eastern Cardo of the city. The Austrian Hospice began rebuilding a low retaining wall on their north-eastern boundary, which had collapsed a few years ago. When excavating for a new foundation, older structures were immediately revealed and the IAA were called in. To date they have uncovered a substantial archway from the Ottoman period and a well-preserved medieval vaulted chamber. Considerable remains of 14th century CE imported tableware, including bowls from Italy and the Far East, indicate that this was an area occupied by well-heeled inhabitants, indeed an elite medieval society. The work continues.

Egyptologist Held For Selling And Smuggling Antiquities

It was reported that a retired US university lecturer in Egyptology was guiding a group of about twenty American tourists around the sites of two Tells in the Galilee and was selling them valuable archaeological artefacts for them to take out of the country. The suspect guide was detained at Ben Gurion airport by Customs and IAA officials but allowed to leave after signing a confession and posting a large deposit to ensure his return for future trial. The tourists were stopped at the Egyptian border at Taba, where they were found to be taking out valuable items. The photographs of the antiquities found on the guide and in his hotel room show fairly standard series of Roman oil lamps and bronze and silver coins of the Second Temple period.

The information released by the police and the IAA is sketchy pending the trial, and it is believed that the IAA are using the case to warn tourists against buying antiquities from unauthorized dealers and taking them out of the country, which is a criminal offence with a penalty of up to three years imprisonment.

Stop Press! Opening of Ophel City Walls Site

21st June saw the official opening of a new archaeological park to the north-east of the City of David Centre. The excavations were directed by Dr. Eilat Mazar of the Hebrew University, who described the remains as being possibly situated around the Water Gate mentioned in Nehemiah 3:26. These descriptions are still controversial and it is hoped that more information will be available in the next Report.

Stephen Gabriel Rosenberg,

W.F. Albright Institute of Archaeological Research, Jerusalem

 

Report from Jerusalem, #19, December 2009

UNESCO Conservation in Acre

At the end of November a special course was started at the International Conservation Centre in Acre called “Saving the Stones”. The course will run for five months and is aimed at young people who wish to learn all the current techniques of preservation of ancient buildings, and the city of Acre itself serves as their classroom. The youngsters come from all over the world and participate in actual restoration projects, learning all the processes of documentation, survey, planning the treatment and the practical work itself. This is the first time that the course is being held, and it is planned to run twice a year. The director, Shirley Anne Peleg said it was an opportunity for the students to learn their techniques within the context of a living community in an ancient city like Acre, which is an UNESCO Heritage Site. The course is a joint enterprise between the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA), the Old Acre Development Authority and the Acre Municipality.

Horvat Ma’agura, A Hasmonean Fortress

In time for the Hanukkah holiday, the IAA announced that recent work in the Negev had demonstrated that the Hasmonean kings had extended their rule deep into the Negev. Dr. Tali Erickson-Gini, of the IAA, explained that Josephus had indicated that their rule had only extended to just south of the Gaza strip, which was conquered by Alexander Yannai in 99 BCE, and archaeologists had found nothing to indicate that their rule extended further. Now, at the fortress of Horvat Ma’agura, two miles west of the Sde Boker region, it was found that it was the Hasmoneans who built the fortress (and not the Romans as previously thought) to stop the Nabateans using this route to bring spices from Petra to Gaza. Hasmonean coins of Alexander Yannai were found here as well as at Nessana, a desert town, about 25 miles west of Horvat Ma’agura. It appears that the Hasmoneans employed mercenary as well as Jewish troops to fight the Nabateans, judging by the evidence of imported vessels and wine, the remains of whose dregs were found by Dr. Erikson-Gini.

A case of Roman-era leprosy and tuberculosis

Some time ago Prof. Shimon Gibson, with colleagues Dr. Boaz Zissu and Prof. James Tabor, located a sealed tomb at the Akeldama Cemetery in the Ben Hinnom valley of Jerusalem, to the south-west of the Old City. It became known as the Tomb of the Shroud because the male body was wrapped in a simple white shroud and was unusual in that the body’s bones had not been removed to an ossuary after a year, as was the normal practice at the time. The tomb doorway was found sealed and the skeleton was dated by C14 radio-carbon method to the first half of the first century CE. The remains were sent for medical analysis and the results, by Israeli, American and British scientists, have just been published. The results show that this is the first known case of a human shown to have been suffering from leprosy, a form of the skin disease psoriasis.

However the DNA analysis showed that the poor man suffering from leprosy, actually died of tuberculosis. The shroud in which he was contained was of a much simpler weave than the famous Turin Shroud, which was claimed to have wrapped the body of Jesus, and the experts have therefore suggested that this known shroud, of the time of Jesus, shows that the complex Turin one was of much later manufacture.

A Roman house in Nazareth

Just in time for Christmas, the IAA announced the find of a house of the time of Jesus in Nazareth. The excavation, led by Yardenna Alexandre (née Rosenberg) was an IAA rescue operation in the courtyard of what is planned to be a small museum being built next to the Church of the Annunciation. The dig revealed a large wall of the Mameluke period built over five or six walls of a modest dwelling with pottery of the first century CE (the early Roman period). These are the remains of the first house of this period found in Nazareth, which the NT says was the location of Jesus’s childhood. This work, together with the location of nearby tombs, suggests that Nazareth was at that time a small Jewish village of about fifty houses. The house contained a water cistern and an underground storage chamber, with a concealed entrance, that acted as a storage silo and may have also been used to hide persons from the eyes of the Romans during the Great Revolt of 66 CE. The pottery found was of a simple nature but included some chalk stone vessels which indicate that the inhabitants were concerned about ritual purity matters, as the stone, in contrast to clay, would not be subject to ritual impurity. The excavation has still to be completed and will then be left exposed in the courtyard to be attached to a small museum, being developed by the Chemin Neuf Franciscan organization, who sponsored the IAA excavation.

Stephen G. Rosenberg
Albright Institute, Jerusalem

Report from Jerusalem, #18, November 2009

Vandalism at Nabatean Avdat

Since the vandalism of the Nabatean site at Avdat, which I mentioned in the last Report, two Bedouins have been arrested. One of them was the sole guard on the site and both of the men have denied responsibility. The State has great difficulty in dealing with the Bedouins, who are often of no fixed abode and live by a culture different from that of the majority of the population. Many of them serve in the army and perform valuable services, particularly as guides and trackers in the Negev. However the damage to the archaeological site was criminal and comprehensive and will no doubt be punished accordingly.

Roman mosaic from Lod

The remarkable 1,700 year old mosaic of Lod, which was also mentioned in a previous Report, has been moved to the Israel Museum for essential preservation work. When the plaster base was uncovered, the restoration team looked for the original guide lines that outlined the placing of the tesserae. To their surprise they also found the imprint of several feet and sandals of the original artists. Jacques Neguer of the IAA Conservation Department, described them as having been made by sizes 34, 37, 42 and 44 sandals. The mosaic will be fully restored and the footprints will be removed and exhibited separately at the new Mosaic Archaeological Centre in Lod.

New exhibit at the Davidson Centre, Jerusalem

A new exhibition at the Davidson Centre by the Temple Mount in Jerusalem opened on November 11th. It is organized by the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) and will show the latest finds from the area, including the sarcophagus lid inscribed with the words “Ben Hacohen Hagadol” and many coins of the Roman and Jewish mints of the Great Revolt period of 66-70 CE. There will also be a model of the city during Second Temple times. Many of the exhibits come from very recent digs, by Prof. Ronnie Reich and others, but some go back to the excavations headed by Prof. Benjamin Mazar in the 1970s.

New book discusses the Temple Mount, Haram al Sharif

Although we do no want to get involved in the political scene, you will know that arguments about the Jewish presence (or non-presence) on the Haram al-Sharif or Temple Mount continue to rage. It was therefore very heartening that a new volume on the subject was recently launched at the Ecole Biblique in East Jerusalem, called “WHERE HEAVEN AND EARTH MEET: Jerusalem’s Sacred Esplanade”. It gives a detail outline of the site’s history and is the result of three years’ work and discussion by 22 scholars from the Moslem, Christian and Jewish academies and faiths, and it is a remarkable demonstration of the respect that exists between their separate worlds and literatures.

New discoveries from Acre

In a rescue dig last month in Acre, just north of the City wall, a hoard of broken marble items was uncovered. They date to the 13th century Crusader period and were found in a sealed cellar that contained 350 pieces, including a stone cross and broken tombstones. Dr. Edna Stern, who conducted the dig on behalf of the IAA, said this was a unique find for the period and demonstrated the high quality of the work being undertaken by the Crusaders in their local capital. Crusader Acre fell to the Mameluks in 1291, presumably before the hoarder of these precious fragments, some of which may have been imported, was able to use them in local building work.

Also at Acre, experts from 16 countries met this month for the second UNESCO World Heritage workshop on “Disaster Risk Reduction to Cultural Heritage Sites”. The first such meeting had been held in Olympia, Greece, in 2008. Areas of collaboration were identified, particularly between Israel and Jordan, and especially in the field of dangers from earthquakes, where the work being done by Israel at Masada can be applied to similar sites at Petra in Jordan, both being subject to such dangers in the Rift Valley around the Jordan basin. The focus of the papers was to identify the dangers and take preventative measures before disaster struck, and to pressurize governments into finding the necessary funds. An International Conservation Centre is being set up by Israel in the Old City of Acre to establish training in the conservation of these valuable Heritage sites all around the world.

Stephen G. Rosenberg
Albright Institute, Jerusalem