Archaeological Dig (Emek Tzurim, Jerusalem, Israel) with Author Suz Meyers
Would you like to see what we found when we sifted through soil from the base of the Temple Mount? Check out this video on the Temple Mount Sifting Project at Emek Tzurim National Park in Jerusalem.
Emek Zurim
Ancient Jerusalem Archeological Sifting Project with Remember Jerusalem Tours.
Emek Tzurim
Short report about the Temple Mount sifting project at the Emek Tzurim National Park in East Jerusalem. You can find more info at: alt-arch.org
Straight from the Bible: Tiny First Temple Stone Weight Unearthed in Jerusalem
During the sifting of archaeological soil in the Emek Tzurim National Park, under the auspices of the City of David Foundation, a tiny stone weight engraved with ancient Hebrew letters spelling the word Beka was unearthed.
The weight, which dates back to the First Temple period, was found in archaeological soil originating from the foot of Robinson’s Arch at the Western Wall, just north of the City of David. The soil was transferred from the excavation area to the sifting site in the Emek Tzurim National Park for careful sorting, during which the weight was uncovered.
The Beka weight was used to evaluate the half-shekel donation brought by the Jewish people for both the maintenance of the Temple and as a census, as described in the book of Exodus 38:26: “One Beka per head; [that is,] half a shekel, according to the holy shekel, for each one who goes through the counting, from twenty years old and upward, for six hundred three thousand, five hundred and fifty [people].”
Archaeologist Eli Shukron, who directed the excavations on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority, explained: “When the half-shekel tax was brought to the Temple during the First Temple period, there were no coins, so they used silver ingots. In order to calculate the weight of these silver pieces they would put them on one side of the scales and on the other side they placed the Beka weight. The Beka was equivalent to the half-shekel, which every person from the age of twenty years and up was required to bring to the Temple.”
It should be noted that the biblical shekel weighed 11.33 grams. According to Shukron, “Beka weights from the First Temple period are rare; however this weight is even rarer, because the inscription on it is written in mirror script and the letters are engraved from left to right instead of right to left. It can therefore be concluded that the artist who engraved the inscription on the weight specialized in engraving seals, since seals were always written in mirror script so that once stamped the inscription would appear in regular legible script. “Apparently, the seal craftsman got confused when he engraved the inscription on the weight and mistakenly used mirror script as he was used to doing. From this mistake we can learn about the general rule: The artists who engraved weights during the First Temple period were the same artists who specialized in creating seals.”
“This three thousand-year-old Beka weight, inscribed with ancient Hebrew was likely used in the First Temple, anchoring once again, the deep historical connection of the Jewish People to Jerusalem. It is a reminder from our ancestors in First Temple times telling us that the State of Israel of today does not rest only on a 70-year-old United Nation’s vote, but rather, rests upon a foundation that began more than three millennia ago. Every single day, archeologists in the City of David are uncovering our past and preserving our future.” Said Doron Spielman, Vice President of the City of David Foundation.
The sifting project in Emek Tzurim National Park, under the auspices of the City of David Foundation, together with the Israel Nature and Parks Authority, is a large-scale archaeological project that offers the public an opportunity to have an archaeological experience without the need for prior knowledge. The project, earning the name “The Archaeological Experience,” is closely guided by archaeologists and allows participants to become an “archaeologists for a day” when they sift through the soil and find treasures from the past. Among the artifacts discovered so far in this project: King Hezekiah’s seal, coins from various periods of Jerusalem, arrowheads, jewelry and more.
The artifact will be on display to the general public during Hanukkah in Emek Tzurim National Park.
Plan for a new park in east Jerusalem angers residents
Activists say the national park is meant to stop the growth of Arab neighborhoods.
The full article can be seen on the Jerusalem Post website: jpost.com . More from The Jerusalem Post:
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Girl finds 3300 yr old Amulet w/ name of conquering Pharaoh Tuthmose III -LEGENDS & LEGACIES
An ancient Egyptian amulet dating back more than 3,200 years to the days of the Pharaohs discovered by 12-year-old girl taking part in the Temple Mount Sifting Project.
Neshama Spielman, from Jerusalem, found the artifact in 2012 at a dig organized by the City of David- and the Temple Mount Sifting Project, which works to examine tons of dirt removed without archaeological supervision from the Temple Mount by the Muslim Waqf.
Although found in 2012, details of the find and its identification have only now been revealed, as the piece was taken away for laboratory testing, and the Spielman family only received a phone call in 2016 telling them the amulet had been identified.
Now 14, was Neshama just 8 when she made the find. She was sifting through dirt at the Emek Tzurim National Park on the slopes of the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem when she noticed the small rectangular object.
Just 21 millimeters long, 16 millimeters high, and 4 millimeters thick, the amulet, of which part is missing, has a “raised decoration” on it with a loop at one end that allowed it to be worn on a cord around the neck. That raised decoration shows a cartouche — an oval frame around Egyptian hieroglyphics indicating a royal name. Above the frame archaeologists could make out the symbol of an eye and that of a cobra.
“Thutmose III was one of the most important pharaohs in Egypt’s New Kingdom and is credited with establishing the Egyptian imperial province in Canaan,” said Gabriel Barkay, the co-founder and director of the Temple Mount Sifting Project. “Thutmose III referred to himself as ‘the one who has subdued a thousand cities,’ and it is known that for more than 300 years, during the Late Bronze Age, Canaan and the city state of Jerusalem were under Egyptian dominion, likely explaining the presence of this amulet in Jerusalem.”
“Objects bearing the name of Thutmose III continued to be produced in Egypt long after the time of his reign, reflecting the significance and lasting impression of this king,” Barkay said.
Dating the amulet was possible based on “an identical pendant found in Nahal Iron in northern Israel, announced in 1978,” explained Zachi Dvira, co-founder and director of the Temple Mount Sifting Project. “Along with that pendant, which also bore the name of Thutmose III, was another amulet bearing the name of King Seti I, an Egyptian pharaoh who ruled Egypt during the late 14th to the early 13th centuries BCE. This seems to indicate that both pendants date to the same time period, namely the late 14th-early 13th century BC.”
This is not the first time a youngster has found something iteresting...
recently a 10 Year Old Girl Found a 11th to 12th centuries Crusader Arrowhead from the time when the Knights Templar resided on the Temple Mount. In 2015, Ten-year-old Matvei Tcepliaev, a tourist from Russia, was participating in the Temple Mount Sifting Project during his family's visit to Jerusalem. Amidst the dirt that is the focus of this project—illegally excavated from the Temple Mount in 1999—he discovered a seal dating to the time of King David and the Jebusites, 3,000 years ago. Archaeologists called it a rare find from that period of Jerusalem's history.
10 Year Old Girl Finds a 11th to 12th centuries Crusader Arrowhead from the time when the Knights Templar resided on the Temple Mount.
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Emek Shaveh: Archaeology in the shadow of the conflict
De geschiedenis van Jeruzalem kent veel verschillende perioden, maar de regering van Israël heeft alleen oog voor de Joodse periode. Dat zegt archeoloog Yonathan Mizrachi, directeur van Emek Shaveh een organisatie van archeologen in Jeruzalem, in een korte film over de verwevenheid van archeologie met de bezettingspolitiek van Israël in bezet Oost-Jeruzalem. Die eenzijdige belangstelling voor de Joodse periode verdiept de bezetting van Oost-Jeruzalem.
National Park Authority actively confuscating land 1
The Israel National Park Authority is doing so called cleaning work on the private land of A-Tur residents of East-Jerusalem. Guarded by border control and police they are actively destructing one of the entrances to the village, and actively setting facts on the ground in preparation for the national park the municipality wants to build on these lands, although the national park has not been approved yet.
Sifting Archaelogical Rubble from the Temple Mount- City of David
Have you ever held ancient artifacts from the Temple Mount in your own hands? Did you ever find an archaeological treasure more precious than gold? Join us in uncovering the glorious past of the Temple Mount. Sift through rubble that originated in ancient buildings from the Temple Period and learn about the findings from archaeologists and expert guides at the site.
To date, well over 50,000 artifacts have been found through the sifting project .
Over 120,000 people have joined in the sifting efforts since 2001
This project, operated under the auspices of the City of David, is located in nearby Emek Zurim National Park
For more information and to volunteer for as little as a few hours or a few days visit or contact us *6033, rcv@cityofdavid.org.il
Summer Fun in Ancient Jerusalem- City of David
An overview of summer activities from 2009 in the City of David-Ancient Jerusalem.
To reserve a tour dial *6033, +972 626 8700, rcv@cityofdavid.org.il
or enter the City of David website: cityofdavid.org.il
Jerozolima - Emek Curim - Dolina Skał - רושלים - Jerusalem - Izrael - Tsurim Valley
Jerozolima - Emek Curim - Dolina Skał - רושלים - Jerusalem - Izrael - Tsurim Valley
Ein Yael
Camp Sdei Chemed Girls Ein Yael 2006
The Altar of Jeusua in Mount Ebal visit 2006
The Altar of in Mount Ebal from 12th-13th b.c found by pro. Adam Zartal from Haifa University. We visit there at 1 january 2006 - the seventh candle of Hanuca unser the guide of MIDRESHET SOMRON
Archaeologist Says Arabs Broke Temple Mount Status Quo
Issawiya Demo - Feb 3, 2012
A vigal and tree planting in protest of the planned national park to be built on the land belonging to residents of Issawiya and A-Tur.
Settler Bulldozer Archaeology in Tel Rumeida
Interview with Yonathon Mizrachi of Emek Shaveh in Tel Rumeida, Hebron, Palestine
22 May 2014