Antiquities in the desert

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As you would expect, "A" is for ANTIQUITIES and ARCHAEOLOGY for today's ABC Wednesday.
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All photos will enlarge with a click.

Welcome to En Gedi Antiquities National Park, much of which is under the sheltering tent.
Note the Dead Sea in the background, and the mountains of Moab in Jordan.
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The first sign of this magnificent mosaic was discovered accidentally, when a field was being plowed in 1965. It turned out to be a synagogue, adjoining rooms, and a street.
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The thriving Jewish community living in En Gedi existed from the 3rd to the 6th century CE (the late Roman and Byzantine periods, also know as the period of the Mishnah and Talmud).
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Archaeologists conclude that the settlement and its synagogue were destroyed by fire in a wave of persecution under the Roman emperor Justinian I around 530 CE.
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The synagogue probably had a second-story balcony.
The present mosaic carpet was created in the mid-5th century to replace older ones.
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The bamah, where the portable holy ark stood and where the Torah scroll was read.
Three small menorahs adorn the mosaic.
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The rooms might have been dwellings for the synagogue staff.
Two mikvahs (purification baths) were also found.
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This is cool because it shows the stratigraphy of the preparatory layers for a mosaic, layers with fancy names like (from bottom to top) statumen, rudus, nucleus, bedding layer, and tessellatum.
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The most exciting part of any mosaic--the dedicatory inscription!

But not easy to photograph with the setting sun, so instead I give you a picture of it from the excellent leaflet.
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I quote the leaflet written by Avivit Gera and translated to English by Miriam Feinberg Vamosh:

"The first section depicts the 13 ancestors of humanity: 'Adam, Seth, Enosh, Kenan, Mehalel, Jared, Enoch, Methusaleh, Lamech, Noah, Ham, Japeth.' "
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"The second section shows the 12 signs of the zodiac, the three patriarchs, the word 'shalom,' followed by the names of Daniel's three companions who, according to legend, are the three bases on which the world rests, and finally, a blessing for peace on Israel:

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'Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius, and Pisces. Nissan, Iyyar, Sivan, Tamuz, Av, Elul, Tishrei, Marheshvan, Kislev, Tevet, Shevat, and Adar, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Peace, Hananiyah, Mishael, and Azariyah, peace on Israel.' "
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"In the third section, an inscription appears in Aramaic which mentions the benefactors of the synagogue, Yose, Ezron, and Hazikin, sons of Halfi.

The inscription also charges all inhabitants to conduct themselves according to the rules of the village.

It warns of a curse on those who start quarrels, slander their neighbors before the Gentiles, steal, or 'reveal the town's secret.' "

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"Most scholars believe that En Gedi's economic welfare was based on a secret method for producing perfume from the balsam shrubs cultivated in the area. The inscription may hint at this possibility."

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"The fourth section contains an Aramaic inscription noting the names of the above-mentioned benefactors and calls for blessings on them for their good deeds."

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The fifth section (not shown) thanks the citizens and "Yonatan the cantor" who paid their share toward the repair of the synagogue.

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And I, Dina, thank the archaeologists who excavated this site off and on from 1970 to 2002 and the Israel Antiquities Authority Conservation Department who lovingly preserved and restored these wonderful mosaics and the site from 1991 to 1996.

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