Subscribe to Print Edition | Wed., February 10, 2010 Shvat 26, 5770 | | Israel Time: 05:03 (EST+7)
Haaretz israel news English
web haaretz.com
Jewish World Haaretz Toolbar
Diplomacy
Defense Opinion National
Print Edition
Car Rental
Focus U.S.A. Strenger than Fiction Business Travel Magazine Week's End Anglo File Books Haaretz Store
Archaeologists discovered pottery fragments stamped with royal seals in Umm Tuba.
 (Israel Antiquities Authority)
Share |
Last update - 15:39 23/02/2009
Archaeologists unearth relics from eras of First and Second Temples
By Haaretz Service
Tags: israel news 
 

The Israel Antiquities Authority on Monday announced the discovery of a large building dating to the time of the First and Second Temples during an excavation in the village of Umm Tuba in southern Jerusalem.

The excavation was conducted by Zubair Adawi on behalf of the antiquities authority, prior to the start of construction there by a private contractor.

The archaeological remains include several rooms arranged around a courtyard, in which researchers found a potter's kiln and pottery vessels. The pottery remains seem to date from the eighth century B.C.E. (First Temple period).
Advertisement
According to the antiquities authority, the site was destroyed along with Jerusalem and all of Judah during the Babylonian conquest. Jews reoccupied it during the Hasmonean period (second century B.C.E.) and it existed for another two hundred years until the destruction of the Second Temple.

During the Byzantine period, the place was re-inhabited during the settlement of monasteries and farmsteads in the region between Jerusalem and Bethlehem.

The excavators also found royal seal impressions on some of the pottery fragments that date to the era of Hezekiah, King of Judah (end of the eighth century B.C.E.).

Four "LMLK" impressions (which indicate the items belonged to the king) were discovered on handles of large jars used to store wine and oil. Seals of two high-ranking officials named Ahimelekh ben Amadyahu and Yehokhil ben Shahar, who served in the government, were also found.

The Yehokhil seal was stamped on one of the LMLK impressions before the jar was fired in a kiln and this is a rare example of two such impressions appearing together on a single handle.

Excavators also discovered a Hebrew inscription - dating 600 years later than the Kingdom of Judah seals - on a fragment of a jar neck. An alphabetic sequence was engraved below the vessel's rim in Hebrew script that is characteristic of the beginning of the Hasmonean period (end of the second century B.C.E.).

Three years ago, the remains of a monastery from this period were also excavated. Together with the current findings, they confirm the identification of the place as "Metofa," which is mentioned in the writings of the church fathers in the Byzantine period.

Related articles:
  • Archaeologists in Jerusalem unearth figurine from time of emperor Hadrian
  • Wall of Second Temple-era Jerusalem found in Mt. Zion excavations
  • Digital Bible: Dead Sea Scrolls to be made available online
    • PROMOTION: Mamilla Hotel
    Bookmark to del.icio.us  
     
    Wiesel's petition
    Nobel winner says he wouldn't cry if Ahmadinejad were killed , and has signed on it.
    Heckling Michael Oren
    Muslim students scream 'killer' during Israeli envoy's lecture at the University of California.
      1.   What does this prove? 14:34  |  Allon 23/02/09
      2.   The ISRAEL haters & deniers are noticably ABSENT 23:14  |  Ari ben Yisrael 23/02/09
      3.   What? No Palestinian ruins? 04:01  |  MichaelF 24/02/09
      4.   To Allon 04:37  |  Montrealear 24/02/09
      5.   Who came first? 04:50  |  utagawa 24/02/09
      6.   Their has been a fascination with accounts of Christian connectio 08:13  |  Susanna/shoshana 24/02/09
      7.   Archaeology 16:48  |  Abooda 24/02/09
      8.   First & Second Temples 12:01  |  The Teacher/Instruct 25/02/09
    Special Offers
    Advertisement
    Eldan Rent a Car
    Israel's leading car rental company offers you a 20% discount on online reservations
    Shalom Hartman Institute Jerusalem
    This Summer in Jerusalem Learn about the "Other". Special Prices Until Feb. 15
    100% Pure Dead Sea Salt
    Lowest price in the U.S.A. for genuine Dead Sea Salts
    Online forex trading now with
    the security of a Swiss bank
    Best Passover Vacations Under the Sun in Florida, Arizona, Mexico.
    Resort Vacations. All the traditions of Passover. Glatt Kosher
    Your Aliyah starts here.
    Nefesh B'Nefesh Aliyah Workshops and Personal Meetings in your area
    Camp Kimama Israel - Summer 2010
    An incredible experience with Jewish youth from all over the world
     Haaretz Hot Topics
    Exclusive: EU draft on dividing Jerusalem
    Gilad Shalit
    Settlement Freeze
    Iran nuclear program
    More Headlines
    03:25 Israel: Gaza crossing to stay shut as long as Hamas in power
    03:40 Defense Minister and IDF chief at loggerheads over Ashkenazi's future
    04:58 Like Netanyahu, Barak wants second shot as prime minister
    21:23 Obama: Iran sanctions in weeks over nuclear program
    04:55 Israeli-Palestinian peace would neutralize Iran threat
    23:47 'Israel may free Palestinian prisoners when peace talks resume'
    22:33 Shalit family to Red Cross: Verify Hamas claims on Gilad's health
    02:31 TV ROUND-UP: West promises Iran sanctions, Violence breaks out in East Jerusalem
    02:42 Israel strikes Gaza in response to Qassam rockets
    03:23 Suspected Jewish terrorist admits to anti-missionary activities
    22:58 Four things Netanyahu needs for an Israeli strike on Iran
    22:32 6 hurt in West Bank clashes between Palestinians, settlers
    20:35 Barak: Only those who risk living in Israel should vote here
    22:45 Clothing store H&M to open Israel flagship on March 11
    Home | TV | Print Edition | Diplomacy | Opinion | Arts & Leisure | Sports | Jewish World | Site rules |
    | Advert: Recommended Restaurants | Makom: Engaging on Israel
    | Search engine marketing
    Haaretz.com, the online edition of Haaretz Newspaper in Israel, offers real-time breaking news, opinions and analysis from Israel and the Middle East. Haaretz.com provides extensive and in-depth coverage of Israel, the Jewish World and the Middle East, including defense, diplomacy, the Arab-Israeli conflict, the peace process, Israeli politics, Jerusalem affairs, international relations, Iran, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, the Palestinian Authority, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, the Israeli business world and Jewish life in Israel and the Diaspora.
    © Copyright  Haaretz. All rights reserved