An international research team in Israel has made unique finds in a synagogue from the Byzantine period, according to the University of Bern, which participated in the discovery. The findings demonstrate the importance of synagogues as centers of contemporary religious and social life in Byzantine times.
An ancient synagogue was discoverd in Horvat Kur, a Galilean village near the Sea of Galilee in Israel, by an international team of specialists and students in 2010 . It dates from the 4th to 5 Century after Christ. Now the excavation team, which also includes to Bern researchers and students, reports a new successes: first discovering several findings in a unique combination - for example, household pottery from the late Roman and early Byzantine period (4th / 5th Century AD) .
The most spectacular find: a stone table in basalt.
The seat of the municipal manager in its original position
In the synagogue interior also a stone seat was exposed. The seat was installed in a bank along the south wall of the synagogue and two levels accessible. "This seat was probably used by the head of the community on the occasion of meetings. It is the first such seat each in Israel in situ has been found, that is, in its original position, "says Stefan Münger of Berne Institute of Jewish Studies and co-director of the excavation project.
Also at the - looking to Jerusalem - south wall archaeologists found the remains of a once ornate podium (a so-called "Bemah"), which had originally stood on the ark. Among the decorative elements include the remains of a lion and a rosette of limestone reliefs.
"All these findings show the importance of the synagogue as a center of religious and social life," says Münger, "because no other building in the nearby village has even come close to similar structural or decorative features."
Rich household ceramics
In a sealed cistern near the synagogue, a great number of intact vessels of the late Roman or early Byzantine period (4th / 5th Century AD) was found. Among them are many types of vessels that have been found so far never complete.
The stone seat, which was probably the head of the Community reserve and was first found in situ.
Image: Kinneret Regional Project.
All these new discoveries, according to researchers contribute significantly to the understanding of the cultural history of the Galilean synagogue building during the Byzantine era and open new perspectives for the Synagogenfoschung general. The new findings are presented in November at a colloquium in Germany and one in the exhibition "Israel Museum" in Jerusalem is currently in preparation.
The Kinneret Regional Project
The excavations at Horvat Kur are part of the "Kinneret Regional Project" and are of a joint research team from the Universities of Bern, Helsinki, Leiden and the Wofford College (USA) performed. Researchers and students of these universities as well as students and experts from Belgium, Germany, Great Britain, Israel and Romania took part in this year's excavation.
An ancient synagogue was discoverd in Horvat Kur, a Galilean village near the Sea of Galilee in Israel, by an international team of specialists and students in 2010 . It dates from the 4th to 5 Century after Christ. Now the excavation team, which also includes to Bern researchers and students, reports a new successes: first discovering several findings in a unique combination - for example, household pottery from the late Roman and early Byzantine period (4th / 5th Century AD) .
The most spectacular find: a stone table in basalt.
The basalt-table, the decorations will give clues to its precise function.
Image: Kinneret Regional Project.
The most significant finding is in accordance with the international excavation team a basalt stone, who belonged to an earlier phase in the construction history of the synagogue.The stone is shaped like a low table and is decorated with figurative and geometric patterns. Its function is unclear: did it as a lectern for the opened scroll, who knelt before the reader, or was it a base for a wooden desk, behind which stood and recited the reader? The stone could have played a different role in the synagogue have practice. The detailed analysis of the decoration was intended to provide further insights.
The most significant finding is in accordance with the international excavation team a basalt stone, who belonged to an earlier phase in the construction history of the synagogue.The stone is shaped like a low table and is decorated with figurative and geometric patterns. Its function is unclear: did it as a lectern for the opened scroll, who knelt before the reader, or was it a base for a wooden desk, behind which stood and recited the reader? The stone could have played a different role in the synagogue have practice. The detailed analysis of the decoration was intended to provide further insights.
The seat of the municipal manager in its original position
In the synagogue interior also a stone seat was exposed. The seat was installed in a bank along the south wall of the synagogue and two levels accessible. "This seat was probably used by the head of the community on the occasion of meetings. It is the first such seat each in Israel in situ has been found, that is, in its original position, "says Stefan Münger of Berne Institute of Jewish Studies and co-director of the excavation project.
Also at the - looking to Jerusalem - south wall archaeologists found the remains of a once ornate podium (a so-called "Bemah"), which had originally stood on the ark. Among the decorative elements include the remains of a lion and a rosette of limestone reliefs.
"All these findings show the importance of the synagogue as a center of religious and social life," says Münger, "because no other building in the nearby village has even come close to similar structural or decorative features."
Rich household ceramics
In a sealed cistern near the synagogue, a great number of intact vessels of the late Roman or early Byzantine period (4th / 5th Century AD) was found. Among them are many types of vessels that have been found so far never complete.
Image: Kinneret Regional Project.
All these new discoveries, according to researchers contribute significantly to the understanding of the cultural history of the Galilean synagogue building during the Byzantine era and open new perspectives for the Synagogenfoschung general. The new findings are presented in November at a colloquium in Germany and one in the exhibition "Israel Museum" in Jerusalem is currently in preparation.
The Kinneret Regional Project
The excavations at Horvat Kur are part of the "Kinneret Regional Project" and are of a joint research team from the Universities of Bern, Helsinki, Leiden and the Wofford College (USA) performed. Researchers and students of these universities as well as students and experts from Belgium, Germany, Great Britain, Israel and Romania took part in this year's excavation.
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