Picture Credit score: Yaniv Berman, Israel Antiquities Authority

A rare treasure was unearthed in Jerusalem: ivory plaques from the First Temple interval, the primary of their sort to be present in Jerusalem. They had been found within the excavations of the Israel Antiquities Authority and Tel Aviv College on the Givati Parking Lot within the Metropolis of David on the Jerusalem Partitions Nationwide Park, funded by the Metropolis of David Basis.

The ivories, thought of one of many costliest uncooked supplies within the historical world––much more than gold––had been discovered among the many ruins of a palatial constructing that was in use when Jerusalem was on the peak of its energy, within the eighth and seventh centuries BCE. Students consider that the embellished ivories had been inlaid in picket furnishings that had been utilized by the residents of the constructing, who had been doubtless individuals of means, affect, and energy, presumably excessive authorities officers or clergymen.

The ivories might be on show subsequent Tuesday, September 13, on the twenty third Convention of the Metropolis of David Research of Historical Jerusalem. They may also be displayed in October on the Jerusalem Convention of the IAA, Tel Aviv College, and the Hebrew College.

Based on excavation administrators Prof. Yuval Gadot of Tel Aviv College’s Division of Archaeology and Close to Jap Cultures, and Dr. Yiftah Shalev of the IAA, “so far, we solely knew of embellished ivories from the capitals of the good kingdoms within the First Temple interval, akin to Nimrud, the capital of Assyria, or Samaria, the capital of the Israelite Kingdom. Now, for the primary time, Jerusalem joins these capitals. We had been already conscious of Jerusalem’s significance and centrality within the area in the course of the First Temple interval, however the brand new finds illustrate how necessary it was and locations it in the identical league because the capitals of Assyria and Israel. The invention of the ivories is a step ahead in understanding the political and financial standing of town as a part of world administration and economic system.”

Ivory is talked about just a few occasions within the Bible, at all times in reference to royalty or nice wealth – the outline of the throne of King Solomon (I Kings 10:18); an ivory palace constructed by King Ahab in Samaria (1 Kings 22:39); and the prophet Amos’ castigation of Israelite the Aristocracy: “They lie on ivory beds, lolling on their couches” (Amos 6:4).

The putting constructing by which the ivories had been unearthed was devastated in an important hearth, in all probability in the course of the Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BCE, and the ivories had been found smashed into tiny items and burnt. Through the excavation, as a part of the wet-sieving undertaking in Emek Tsurim Nationwide Park, no fewer than 1,500 ivory fragments had been discovered. It was solely after a singular restoration undertaking, led by conservator Orna Cohen, along with Ilan Naor from the IAA, that the plaques had been restored, and the richness of the gathering was revealed.

“On the finish of the method of becoming a member of and ‘fusing’ a whole lot of the fragments, we had been in a position to conclude that the assemblage consists of remnants of no less than 12 small sq. plaques – about 5 cm x 5 cm, at most 0.5 cm thick – which had been initially inlaid in picket furnishings,” Cohen and Naor stated.

The ivories that had been found weren’t the one vital gadgets discovered on the web site. A seal fabricated from agate (a semi-precious stone) was additionally unearthed, in addition to a seal impression carrying the identify “Natan-Melech servant of the king,” jars that used to carry vanilla-spiced wine, embellished stone gadgets, and picket objects that had been a part of different massive picket furnishings.

Adorned ivories are the rarest and most excellent finds in archaeological collections. Microscopic testing by Harel Shohat of the College of Haifa revealed that the Metropolis of David ivories had been constituted of elephant tusks.

“The status of ivory can also be related to the good talent required to work with it and create decorations,” Prof. Gadot and Dr. Shalev defined. “The ivory found within the Metropolis of David was in all probability imported, and initially made by artisans in Assyria. The ivories might have come to Jerusalem as a present from Assyria to Jerusalem’s the Aristocracy. Following a comparability with full objects that seem on wall plaques from the palace of the Assyrian King Sennacherib at Nineveh, we suggest that the ivory plaques from Jerusalem had been initially inlaid in a couch-throne, and we think about that it was positioned on the second flooring of the opulent construction.”

The decorations on many of the ivories had been the identical, consisting of frames incised with rosettes, on the heart of which was a stylized tree. Different plaques had been adorned with lotus flowers and a geometrical sample. Based on Dr. Ido Koch and Reli Avisar of Tel Aviv College who studied the objects, the rosette and the tree had been standard symbols within the Mesopotamian visible repertoire. Ivory objects with related decorations had been found within the assemblage of ivories from Samaria, and in additional distant palaces, akin to Nimrud and Khorsabad within the coronary heart of the Assyrian Empire. The Judean elite adopted these symbols in the course of the time that Judea was below the rule of the Assyrian Empire (starting within the second half of the eighth century BCE).

Curiously, these three symbols appeared at the moment in Judea as symbols of the dominion on stone gadgets that adorned opulent buildings in Jerusalem, in addition to seals utilized by the royal administration. Much more fascinating is the truth that the animal and human mythological figures that seem on ivory gadgets that had been found in Samaria, Nimrud, and different facilities, don’t exist within the Jerusalem assortment. “It’s attainable that what we have now right here is proof of a cultural alternative by the Jerusalem elite as to which world symbols to undertake and which to reject,” the students say.

IAA Director Eli Eskozido stated: “The excavations within the Metropolis of David by no means cease shocking us. This time, with the assistance of the fragile and galvanizing work of conservators and researchers, we have now been given a glimpse into the each day lifetime of the individuals who lived right here 1000’s of years in the past. These discoveries breathe life into the traditional stones. The belief that the fabric tradition of the social elites in Jerusalem within the First Temple interval didn’t fall wanting – and maybe even exceeded – that of the opposite ruling facilities within the Historical Close to East, is proof of the standing of Jerusalem at the moment.”