A Rare Roman-Era Lamp Found in Jerusalem https://mosaicmagazine.com/picks/history-ideas/2021/05/a-rare-roman-era-lamp-found-in-jerusalem/

May 7, 2021 | Jesse Holth
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Since the IDF liberated Jerusalem from Jordanian occupation—54 years ago Monday, according to the Jewish calendar—the city has been an unceasing source of archaeological discoveries. Among the most recent is a rare bronze oil lamp found in the City of David, which dates to the period between 70 and 135 CE, i.e., the years between the Romans’ destruction of the Second Temple and their complete expulsion of Jews from Jerusalem. Jesse Holth writes:

The lamp was uncovered in the foundations of a building along the pilgrimage road, [used by Jews from outside Jerusalem coming to visit the Temple]. “The offering of this lamp may attest to the importance of the building, which may have been linked to the protection of the Siloam Pool, the city’s primary water source,” the Israel Antiquities Authority archaeologists Ari Levy and Yuval Baruch said in a statement on Wednesday.

According to Levy and Baruch, the lamp was buried as a foundation deposit—a symbolic ritual thought to bring protection, fortune, or blessings to the inhabitants.

The lamp appears to depict a bearded man in a grotesque style, common during the Roman period. Such pieces were often decorated with ornate scrollwork and whimsical or fantastical details. . . . The researchers note that this artifact is a particularly rare find because the flax wick is still intact inside the lamp, which is unusual since organic materials tend to degrade over time.

Read more on Art News: https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/rare-roman-era-face-shaped-bronze-oil-lamp-found-in-jerusalem-1234591916/