Archaeological discovery in the Holy Land

In an excavation that was recently conducted c. 100 meters north of the Old City wall of Akko, a unique find, according to Dr. Edna Stern, excavation director on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority was discovered from the Crusader period (the thirteenth century CE) - a hoard of 350 marble items that were collected from buildings that had been destroyed.

The hoard was found within the framework of an archaeological excavation conducted by the Israel Antiquities Authority before the Akko Municipality began building a new structure to house classrooms in the Hilmi Shafi Educational Campus.

This find is the likes of which have never been discovered in the Kingdom of Jerusalem in the Crusader period (the capital of which was Akko).

During the archaeological excavations the Israeli Antiques Authority came upon a cellar that was sealed by collapse comprised of building stones and charred beams. Beneath the cellar floor a hoard of c. 350 marble items and colored stones was discovered, including two broken marble tombstones with Latin inscriptions (one belonging to a person by the name of Maratinus), flat marble slabs and marble tiles of various sizes and colors, etc.

Some more extraordinary items were found, such as a large stone cross and a large fragment of porphyry (a rare precious purple stone, which has been the color of royalty from Roman times). The quality of the marble is excellent and it was undoubtedly imported from abroad."

This discover confirm that at that time they used to integrate ancient architectural items from the Roman and Byzantine periods in their construction. And just like today, people at that time also yearned for the classic and the exotic.   According to Dr. Edna Stern, it is known from written sources that the residents of AKKO bought and sold such stones, which were exceptionally valuable, to be reused in buildings. The owner of the hoard,  was either a merchant or collected the stones for his own construction, and was aware of impending danger and therefore buried the valuable stones until such time as the tension abated.

However, the cache of stones was not sold in the end. According to Stern, "We can reasonably assume that the collapse that was found above the hoard is evidence of the building's destruction in 1291 CE, when Crusader Akko was conquered by the Mamluks and was completely devastated".

The marble hoard was removed from the field and transferred to the Israel Antiquities Authority for further study.

A small ceramic stamp used to mark bakery produce may not seem like a significant archeological find, but Israeli archeologists are rather excited by such a discovery made near the northern coastal town of Akko.

In previous eras, Akko was known as Acre, and was a major Christian stronghold in the Holy Land. That is why interest has been piqued by the small ceramic stamp bearing an image of the seven-branched Temple Menorah, which was found in a controlled archeological dig at Horbat Uza just outside Akko. The stamp dates back to the 6th century AD, a time when Akko was a Christian-dominated city under the Byzantine Empire. Gilad Jaffe and Dr. Danny Syon, who are directing the dig on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority, were pleased to be able to do definitely date the artifact:

Excavation site near Acre; courtesy Israel Antiquities Authority

"This is the first time such a stamp is discovered in a controlled archaeological excavation, thus making it possible to determine its provenance and date of manufacture."

The existence of the stamp is evidence that despite Christian control of that part of the Holy Land at that time, a Jewish presence remained. And, that presence must have been somewhat significant if it required its own dedicated bakeries to produce certified kosher goods.

Anient bread stamp with menorah caving Courtesy: Israel Antiquities Authority

"The stamp is important because it proves that a Jewish community existed in the settlement of Uza in the Christian-Byzantine period. The presence of a Jewish settlement so close to Akko - a region that was definitely Christian at this time - constitutes an innovation in archaeological research," stated Jaffe and Syon in an official press release. "Due to the geographical proximity of Horbat Uza to Akko, we can speculate that the settlement supplied kosher baked goods to the Jews of Akko in the Byzantine period."

The stamp itself is of similar design to other Jewish bread stamps found around the region, though which have not been as definitely dated as the Horbat Uza stamp. It is engraved on the flat end with a seven-branched menorah, "a Jewish symbol par excellence," noted Jaffe and Syon, which identified anything marked with the stamp as being undeniably of Jewish manufacture. Along the neck of the stamp's handle are carved Greek letters that experts believe spell out the name Launtius, a common Jewish name in Byzantine times.

This important discovery was only made because of plans to build a new railroad connecting Akko to the central Galilee town of Karmiel. So inundated is the Holy Land with historical remains that any simple construction project must be preceded by a painstaking archeological review and even a comprehensive dig to ensure that the past is not lost in making way for the future.