Excavating an area of the Negev near the Bedouin town of Rahat, archaeologists have found the remains of an ancient Christian farmstead from around the 6th century CE. Nearby, Nathan Steinmeyer reports, they found a small mosque—one of the oldest ever discovered in Land of Israel—alongside an elaborate estate, both dating to about a century later. The findings are evidence of the swift transition from Christianity to Islam among the residents of a land whose Jews had largely been driven out. The short video below, from the Israel Antiquities Authority, shows an aerial view of the excavation of the mosque.
Read more at Bible History Daily
More about: Ancient Israel, Archaeology, Islam, Middle East Christianity