Inscription found in Alexandrium fortress could throw new light on the Jewish revolt
Who was Eleazar Bar GER, and what brought him to the great Alexandrium, a fortress that was built 2,000 years ago by Hasmonean King Alexander Jannaeus?
Israeli researchers recently identified the name of the mysterious man who was scribbled on an Ostracon or a labeled pottery-Sherd, which was found in the fortress over 40 years ago, said the bar-ilan university last month. The presence of the artifact at the location could open dramatic developments in the understanding of the great Jewish uprising against Rome (66-74 AD), since it could testify that Jewish rebels used Alexandrium for their military efforts.
“We speak of an impressive structure in the first century BC” ” “The location was last excavated in the early 1980s on behalf of the Hebrew University [of Jerusalem] By Prof. Yoram Tsafrir and Prof. Yitzhak stomach, and the results of the excavation were never fully published. Today we examine them again. “
Alexandrium or Sartaba, as it is called in Hebrew sources such as the Talmud, is located in the Jordan valley in today’s west bank, about five kilometers north of the settlement of Yafit.
The finds from the 1980s include several Ostraka, including the name Eleazar. According to Raviv, these Ostraka were able to open unprecedented insights into the end of the second temple.
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“These inscriptions, mainly in ancient Aramaic, are very similar to those contained at archaeological sites that are connected to the Jewish revolt such as Masada and Herodium,” Raviv remarked. “However, we have no historical sources that indicate that Alexandrium was used during the rebellion.”
Israeli researchers from Bar-Ilan University and Jerusalems Azrieli Academic College of Engineering decrypt an inscription on a ceramic-Sherd of the Alexandrium Fortress in Jordan Valley. (Dr. Ariel Schwarz, Dr. Amir Shemer and Dr. Yossef Danan/Archaeological Science Laboratory, Jerusalem)
In the 1st century AD Judea was no longer independent, but a province of the Roman Empire. The province was ruled with an iron fist and was spoiled by political unrest and religious tensions, including between different Jewish groups.
The decisive written source over time is the works of the Jewish-Roman historian Flavius Josephus (approx. 37-100 AD).
“Josephus mentions sporadically Alexandrium in connection with the Hasmonäa period and repeats his vicidels under Herod, but says nothing about the Jewish uprising,” remarked Raviv.
Herod the Great, a Jewish Roman guide, ruled in the first century BC. BC with the support of the Roman Empire via Judea. Among other things, it is known for his monumental public works in Jerusalem and his kingdom, which included the construction of Herodium, an impressive fortress that is about 12 kilometers south of Jerusalem (7.45 miles).
Israeli researchers from Bar-Ilan University and Jerusalems Azrieli Academic College of Engineering at the Alexandrium fortress in Jordan Valley. (Yohanan Ben-Gad)
Raviv found that Herod could have been inspired by what Alexander Jannaeus had done with Alexandrium a few decades earlier.
“Both built a fortress and named the site for themselves. Both chose the place of an important struggle they had run, and in both cases there are reasons to assume that they could have been buried there,” he said.
Jewish rebels used Herodium extensively during the great uprising.
In order to decrypt the inscription found in Alexandrium, the bar-like scientists Prof. Esther Eshel and Prof. Hagai Misgav used an innovative system, the hyperpectral photography and artificial intelligence of Dr. Ariel Schwarz, Dr. Amir Shemer and Dr. Yosef Danan from Jerusalem’s Azrielii, Academic College of Engineering was developed. Special photography brought the faded letters that were previously almost invisible to the eye.
Israeli researchers from Bar-Ilan University and Jerusalems Azrieli Academic College of Engineering at the Alexandrium fortress in Jordan Valley. (Yohanan Ben-Gad)
The text reads: “Eleazar bar ger[…] By Theimsa Jkiman. “
“We are not sure whether Elazar was the son of a converts or the letters only marked the beginning of a longer name,” Mengav told Israel’s times.
“The most interesting part is the reference to the man’s place of origin, Akiman,” he added.
Dr. DVIR RAVIV from Bar-Ilan University (left) with Prof. Győző Vöröss, member of the Hungarian Academy of Arts and Director of the excavations at the Hamonäische Location of Machaerus in Jordan (right) and his wife No’eni Vörs (Center). (Decency)
No Judaen village called Akiman appears in any historical records. Dr. Doron Sar-Avi from the Duke Academic College, who also studied the inscription, suggested that the place could be identified with the nearby Khamuniyya location.
This picture was taken on November 24, 2020, points to the Herodium fortress, with King Herod’s grave and the theater of Herod the Great between 23 and 15 BC.
Misgav said that Eleazar was one of the most common Jewish names in the first century AD. According to Misgav, names with names were common during this time and associated with simple tasks of everyday life, such as the distribution of food.
Prof. Hagai Misgav from Bar-Ilan University. (Decency)
“The most important question we have to tackle is whether we can connect the artifact to the Jewish uprising,” said Misgav. “The Sherd looks like other ceramic fragments from this time that was found at other locations, but without additional archaeological context, there is no way to know whether we are talking over 50 to 60 years earlier or 20 to 30 years later.”
The researchers are working on discovering the rest of the 14 Ostraka in the 1980s. So far, some other common Jewish names such as Pinhas and Levi seem to have to bear. One is written in Greek and shows a Greek name.
In order to solve the archaeological secret, a new excavation was opened in Alexandrium, which was listed by RAVIV on behalf of the Bar-Ilan University and in cooperation with the staff officer for Archeology Civil Administration of Judea and Samaria.
The excavation could help determine whether Eleazar as well as Pinhas and Levi were actually Jewish warriors who were ready to fight the Romans.
“We hope that during the big uprising we will find more evidence of using the website,” said Raviv.
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