Second Temple period jars and complete clay objects unearthed in Beit El

Dozens of jars and complete clay objects from the Second Temple period have been discovered by the Civil Administration in archaeological digs at Beit El in the West Bank.

The ancient jars were discovered inside a water hole at the Khirbet Kafr Mer archaeological site at Beit El.

The exciting discovery was made as part of an ongoing large-scale excavation that the Civil Administration has been leading at the site for more than a decade. In August, a richly decorated stone table dating back to the Second Temple era was discovered at the very same site.

The water hole was apparently part of a residential neighborhood in a Jewish community that lived in the area roughly 2000 years ago. The jars and other artifacts were founds stored within large plastered niches carved to the sides of the water hole.

Jars and complete objects from the Second Temple period discovered in archaeological digs at Beit El. (COGAT SPOKESPERSON’S OFFICE)

For hundreds of years, the items were “set there in orderly fashion one on the other and … remained that way till their discovery,” a press release by the Civil Administration noted.

The placement of the items at the bottom of the water hole indicates, according to the Civil Administration, that at some point in history the waterhole was repurposed and turned into a storage basement for vessels. All jars and clay items discovered will undergo restoration before being displayed to the public.

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Head of the Civil Administration’s Archaeological Unit, Hanania Hizmi, congratulated the archeologists on their impressive finds, stating that “the great efforts that the Archaeological Unit of the Civil Administration invests in the Beit El dig have yielded results once more.”

Hizmi added “the archaeological finds that have been unearthed testify to the rich Jewish history of the area and contribute greatly to historical research. We will continue to work night and day to preserve the archaeological sites throughout Judea and Samaria, including the assets of our national tradition and culture among them.”