Archaeological discoveries across the globe keep adding to our understanding of the past. Lately, the archaeological excavations are a lot more than just historical findings. These buried treasures also give us a lot of information about the culture of the era they belong to. Moreover, sometimes, they throw light on some specific historic event or period and add to our knowledge of that time. One such discovery was made by the archaeologists in a cave near the Dead Sea. 4 Roman swords that historians believed were stolen during the Bar Kokhba Revolt by the Judeans, were recently found there. The swords were found in almost perfect condition even after so many years.
It was so because they were hidden in a fissure inside the cliffside cave. The fissure protected them from the arid climate and other weathering conditions. The cave where the swords were found is situated in the Judean Desert, inside the Ein GediNational Park of Israel.
Here’s all about the excavation and findings from the cave in Israel.
About the 4 Roman Swords
Archaeologists were thrilled and thanked their stars for discovering the swords. According to one of them, it was already rare to find a sword like that, but they found four of them. It was almost unbelievable for them too.
Out of 4 roman swords, one was really different. While three of them were protected with leather sheaths and wooden covers. Due to this, their iron blades were preserved very well. These three swords were about 24 to 26 inches long in the “spatha” style (a Roman word). However, the fourth sword piqued the interest of the archaeologists. The blade of this sword unlike others was just 18 inches. According to the archaeologists, this sword was a ring-pommel kind.
These swords were very rare findings for the first time in Israel. And them being in superb condition from the metal to the handle is a miracle for the excavators.
The Cave Findings
Researchers predicted that the cave was about 50 years old. Their prediction is based on the stalactite they found inside the cave. They also found inscriptions in the cave written in Hebrew with some characteristics resembling the period of the First Temple. The swords were found by chance by one of the three researchers- Shai Halevi, an IAA photographer; Boaz Langford, a geologist from Hebrew University, and Asaf Gayer from Ariel University. They went to the cave to photograph the cave and the stalactite in multispectral ways. This way, they could probably get hold of the inscriptions that the naked eye might have missed.
While exploring the cave, Gayer noticed something in one of the cracks in the cave rocks. Something was stuck in a very narrow crack in the wall. There were some shafted weapons along with some other objects in the crack and some wooden scrapes that were actually swords from the past. According to Langford, the swords looked perfectly fine even after being forged for over 2,000 years. They could be used right at the moment due to their good conditions.
The researchers believe that the swords were stolen by the Judeans during the revolt from the Roman soldiers. They probably hid them in the cave to use them later or probably just to get rid of them. Maybe the Judean rebels did not want to get caught with the swords so they just hid them in the cave.
Deductions and Other Findings
The Roman swords that were found in the cave dated back between 132 and 135 C.E. It was the time of the Bar Kokhba revolt in which Jews lived in Judea under Roman rule. Simon Bar Kokhba led a revolt for the Jews against the Roman rule at that time. And, at that time, it was considered dangerous if a Jew got caught with Roman weapons. And with this theory, we can explain why the swords were kept hidden.
The unplanned discovery of the swords prompted the archaeologists to do a thorough excavation of the cave. And, surely it was not in vain. They found artifacts around 6000 years old from the Chalcolithic period and some around 2000 years old belonging to the Roman period. However, out of all these artifacts, a bronze coin that was found at the entrance of the cave got more spotlight.
The coin was from the time of the revolt of Bar Kokhba. This coin had special importance because it touched a very specific time in history.
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