Discovery of Mysterious Ancient Pillar in Jerusalem Could Rewrite History of the Menorah Symbol
Israel Antiquities Authority/FacebookThis ancient stone capital is now on display at the Jay and Jeanie Schottenstein National Campus for the Archaeology of Israel in Jerusalem.
“Finding objects decorated with menorahs, certainly on heavy stone objects, is a clear indication of the existence of a Jewish settlement,” Dr. Yuval Baruch, Deputy Director of Archaeology at the Israel Antiquities Authority, stated.
“Now, let us consider that historical texts supported by archaeological research shows that the Jewish settlement in Judea – and especially in the Jerusalem hills, suffered a great blow as a result of the Bar Kokhba revolt in the 2nd century CE – in fact, it can be considered eliminated in this region. Based on this reality, it is reasonable to surmise that this capital was brought from a destroyed site elsewhere merely to serve as useful building material here, in secondary usage.”
Wherever this rare capital came from — and however its pillar was originally destroyed — archaeologists are thrilled at the discovery. They say that it is “a rare architectural artifact that has no archaeological parallels.”
After reading about this ancient pillar head that was found in Jerusalem, go inside the fascinating story of the Ark of the Covenant, the wooden chest believed to hold the Ten Commandments. Then, learn about Golgotha, the “place of skulls” described in the Bible as the site of Jesus Christ’s crucifixion.
