A rare 1,500 year-old stone capital decorated with a menorah, that was discovered just outside of Jerusalem, will go on display this week ahead of Independence Day, the Israel Antiquities Authority announced on Tuesday.
The limestone capital, which is decorated with an eight-branched menorah, was unearthed five years ago during the construction of a new bridge at the entrance to Jerusalem in the bedroom community of Motza, the state-run archaeological body said.
Israeli researchers believe the capital stood atop a pillar in a Roman-period building or street.
“The stone capital from the Jerusalem hills, decorated with the eight-branched menorah design, is unique, and a rare kind of discovery,” said Yuval Baruch, deputy director of archaeology at the IAA.
He noted that a few decades after the Second Temple’s destruction, the menorah became the distinct symbol of the Jewish people, both in the Diaspora and in the Land of Israel.
However, historical texts supported by archaeological research indicate that the Jewish settlement in Judea—and especially in the Jerusalem hills, suffered greatly as a result of the failed Bar Kokhba revolt in the 2nd century C.E., to the point of being considered eliminated.
“Based on this reality, it is reasonable to surmise that this capital [stone] was brought from a destroyed site elsewhere merely to serve as useful building material here,” said Baruch.
The one-of-a-kind stone will be displayed at the Jay and Jeanie Schottenstein National Campus for the Archaeology of Israel.
“There is no more appropriate time to reveal this find to the public than in these very days of celebrating our identity as a nation,” said IAA Director Eli Escusido. “The connection to roots and to values is the source of our strength.”