‘Rare’ hoard of 1,400-year-old gold coins and jewelry unearthed from ruined city of Hippos near Sea of Galilee
Archaeologists near the Galileo Sea have discovered a rare treasure of gold and rare jewelry, almost 1,400 years old, dating from the Byzantine era.
The treasure contained 97 pieces of pure gold and dozens of jewelry, including earrings encrusted with pearls, semi-precious stones and glass. A team found the treasure while investigating the ancient town of hippopotamia (also known as Sussita), which is on the slopes of the Golan Heights.
Edie Lipsman, a metal detector, discovered the treasure in July walking near a large stone and two ancient walls. “The device has gone mad, I could not believe it – gold coins began to appear one after the other,” Lipsman said in a statement.
The pieces have different emperors, dating from the reign of the Byzantine Emperor Justin I (518 to 527) to the early reign of the Emperor Heraclius (610 to 613, although Heraclius reigned until 641). Some coins had leftover fabric on them, indicating that the treasure had once been wrapped in a fabric.
The parts include solids and large parts of high gold content of the Byzantine Empire; Semiss, which were worth half-solidus; And tremors, which were worth a third of Solidus.
“When you find parts and jewelry, almost 1,400 years old, it looks new, it is a rare experience,” Eisenberg said in the press release.
One of the tremors was particularly rare; He was probably struck in Cyprus in 610 by General Heraclius the elder and his son, who both revolted against the emperor Phocas. The young Heraclius won and established the Byzantine Heraclian dynasty, which reigned from 610 to 711.
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“It is a rare discovery that adds an important layer to our understanding of political and economic history of the time”, ” Danny Syonsaid the excavation numismismist (parts expert), in the press release.
Although we do not know why the treasure was buried, history shows that hippopotams were a tumultuous place during the 7th century. In 614, the armies of the Sasanian Empire, which included Iran and certain parts of the Middle East and Central Asia, invaded Byzantine Palestine. Residents of Christian cities in the region, including hippopotams, hid their wealth as foreign soldiers advanced, according to the press release.
The region has remained a heavy hotspot of the battle for many years. Jerusalem fell during the 614 attack, but the Byzantines took over the region about 15 years later. In 636, the Muslim armies resumed it again. The hippopotams declined during this period, and it was finally abandoned after an earthquake, Galileo in 749.
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“The first half of the 7th century contains the greatest number of emergency treasures in gold and bronze pieces,” Eisenberg told Live Science. This is because Sasanid and Muslim conquests led to generalized chaos at the time. “People were terrified and left a lot of treasures relatively, mainly parts.”
The researchers plan to analyze the new treasure, which will include reading parts, jewelry documentation and in -depth research that will put the discoveries in a regional context, said Eisenberg.
And although it is too early to know when the treasure will be exposed, “I can imagine that of tomorrow, some museums will be interested,” said Eisenberg.
