(Times of Israel) Amanda Borschel-Dan - A trove of over a thousand 2,000-year-old clay impressions used to seal documents was discovered in August in a cave complex at the Bet Guvrin-Maresha National Park in Israel. The clay seals sealed the knots of twine binding papyrus scrolls - hundreds of them - that did not survive their 2,000 years in the caves' moist atmosphere. The imprint of the string and the impression of the papyrus is still visible on the seals. The quantity and quality of the seals is rare on an international scale, said Dr. Ian Stern, who directs the excavation at the site. "It really underlines the fact that the city [of Maresha] was a major cosmopolitan center." Dr. Donald Ariel, head of the Israel Antiquities Authority's Coin Department, said the seals primarily date from the 2nd century BCE. It was a North American youth group participating in the Archaeological Seminars' Dig for a Day program that helped Stern discover the opening to the new cave complex.
2018-09-07 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive