Archaeological News

JERUSALEM — Vandals badly damaged a rare 1,600-year-old mosaic in the northern Israeli city of Tiberias that formed the floor of an ancient synagogue, smashing parts to rubble and scrawling graffiti, antiquity officials said Tuesday. Experts suspect extremist Jews who object, sometimes violently, to excavations they claim involve ancient grave sites. There was no claim of responsibility. Police are investigating. Guards found the damage on Tuesday morning, said archaeologists involved in the...Read Full Story

Photo: Greek Bronze Helmet Credit: Photo courtesy Israel Antiquities Authority. Archaeologists have found a Greek bronze helmet covered with gold leaf that is 2,600-year-old. The bronze helmet probably belonged to a Greek mercenary who fought with Neco, a pharaoh of Egypt.  The helmet was discovered in the waters of Haifa Bay, in Israel. Neco (his name also appears as Necho in some translations of the Bible), was a pharaoh of the 26th Dynasty (Saite).  He ruled from 609 to 595 B.C. Neco...Read Full Story

Wed, Jan 11 2012 4:54 IST | 60 Views | Add your comment SHARE: A tiny seal with the image of a seven-branch menorah, used to stamp the kosher sign on bread 1,500 years ago, was discovered by Israeli archaeologists. Researchers found the ceramic stamp dating back to the 6th century B.C. in Acre, northern Israel, during the excavations at Horbat Uza, Xinhua reported. Israel Antiquities Authority is digging in the area, prior to the construction of the Acre-Carmiel railroad track by the...Read Full Story

Image:  Wall on the Hill of Jonah Credit: Israel Antiquities Authority The Israel Antiquities Authority has announced that archaeologists have discovered the remains of massive walls that date back to the late eighth century and early seventh century BCE.  The remains of the wall were found at Giv’at Yonah, “The Hill of Jonah,” a place  associated with the burial place of the prophet Jonah. According to Dmitri Egorov, an archaeologist with the Israel Antiquities Authority, the wall...Read Full Story

Image: The James OssuaryThe trial of Oded Golan is coming to an end. The defense has presented its argument and the case has gone to the judge to render his decision.The case against Golan is whether the ossuary containing a Hebrew inscription that reads “James son of Joseph brother of Jesus” is authentic. This burial box was discovered in 2002. If the ossuary is authentic, then it may have a direct link to James, the brother of Jesus.However, archaeologists at the Israel Antiquities...Read Full Story

Archeology is green: The Israel Antiquities Authority and archaeologists celebrate rare find of more than 100 intact vessels While conducting a standard excavation to prepare for Israel National Gas Lines Company’s northern gas line installation, the Israel Antiquities Authority discovered a “bottomless pit” of intact cultic vessels.  Layers of vessels that have been preserved for 35 centuries in a natural, underground hollow at the base of Tel Qashish next to Tishbi Junction were excavated...Read Full Story

Image: The Tayinat Lion Archaeologists have uncovered a monumental gate in southeastern Turkey at the site of the Neo-Hittite Tayinat citadel. Among the findings uncovered by archaeologists was a stone-sculptured lion.  Below is an excerpt of the news report: TORONTO, ON – Archaeologists leading the University of Toronto’s Tayinat Archaeological Project in southeastern Turkey have unearthed the remains of a monumental gate complex adorned with stone sculptures, including a magnificently...Read Full Story

| Associated Press APclick here for slideshow Artifacts are being found in a long-sealed tunnel found under the ruins of Teotihuacan which may lead to the discovery of an ancient tomb. TEOTIHUACAN, Mexico -- A long-sealed tunnel has been found under the ruins of Teotihuacan -- and chambers that seem to branch off it may hold the tombs of some of the ancient city's early rulers, archaeologists said Tuesday. Experts say a tomb discovery would be significant because the social structure...Read Full Story

Was Cleopatra a conniving temptress who seduced her way to the top, or the target of recorded history's most effective negative political campaign?A splashy exhibit making its world premiere Saturday at The Franklin Institute makes a case for the latter, using recently discovered artifacts to illustrate two archaeologists' search for the truth — and the tomb — of one of antiquity's most maligned figures."Cleopatra: The Search for the Last Queen of Egypt," features many never-before-seen...Read Full Story

A senior Western archaeologist in Afghanistan says he is struggling to protect a vast wealth of cultural treasures from being stolen and smuggled to wealthier countries, or worse, destroyed altogether."I think there is absolutely no site in this country which is unaffected," Philippe Marquis, the director of a team of French government-funded archaeologists operating in Afghanistan, told AFP in a recent interview."The illegal trade in antiquities is very significant, and is related to all the...Read Full Story