Ancient Christian figurines discovered in 1,500-year-old desert graves
Archaeologists recently uncovered extraordinary artifacts from an ancient African Christian community in Israel, according to officials.
The Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) announced the finds on May 14.
In a Facebook post, the organization said the objects were discovered during an excavation at Tel Malḥata, a mound in the Arad Valley of the Negev Desert. In ancient times, Tel Malḥata served as a crossroads that merchants from the Arabian Peninsula, India and Africa used.
The items were found in 1,500-year-old graves of women and children, according to the IAA. Pictures show multiple figurines with human face shapes, along with scattered artifacts, including jugs and pottery fragments.
Archaeologists also found other burial offerings, including glassware, bronze bracelets, and jewelry made of stone and alabaster. The burials were conducted according to ancient Christian tradition, with excavators describing the figurines as being "heads of African figures, carved in black wood."
In a journal article, researchers said the figurines show that a Christian community lived in Southern Israel "about 1,500 years ago, possibly with some of its members coming from Africa."
Said the article, "Carved from bone, and from ebony wood – a rare raw material originating from southern India and Sri Lanka – the figurines were designed in the form of women and men bearing prominent African facial features, and with a hole for the purpose of wearing them around the neck."
The study added, "It seems their purpose was not only decorative, but also as intimate personal items carrying with them a story of identity, tradition and memory."
The IAA noted that the artifacts were "carefully placed" among the deceased women and children, and after 1,500 years, they're still "exceptionally well-preserved."
"It is possible that the figures represent ancestors, and thus they reflect traditions passed down from generation to generation – even after the adoption of the Christian religion," researchers said.
The article continued, "It is likely that a woman and a child who were buried side-by-side, and in whose graves two of the figurines were discovered, belonged to the same family – and perhaps they were even mother and son."
The IAA noted that unearthing African figurines in Christian graves in Israel is quite unusual and called the find "a rare discovery."
"[It] deepens our understanding of the cultural diversity among the inhabitants of the country in this region about 1,500 years ago," the agency wrote.
Eli Escusido, director of the IAA, described the findings as "moving, not only from an archaeological perspective, but also on a human level."
He added, "They serve as a reminder that the Land of Israel has always been a crossroads of cultures and peoples – individuals arrived here, integrated into the local population, and yet still carried with them traditions and beliefs from distant lands."
The grave discoveries are a few of many remarkable IAA finds in the past year.
In December, the agency announced the discovery of the oldest-known Chinese inscription in Israel, which was found at the holy site of Mount Zion.
In March, an Israeli child uncovered a 3,800-year-old Canaanite amulet at a mound called Tel Azeka, located in the Judean Foothills.
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