See the Greek Biblical Inscription Embedded in an Ancient Mosaic Floor Discovered in Israel

Archaeologists have uncovered an ancient complex of ruined Byzantine-era buildings in Israel. The structures include a winepress, a large warehouse and what may be a monastery boasting a colorful mosaic floor. The floor features a Greek inscription from Deuteronomy: “Blessed are you when you come in and blessed are you when you go out.”

The ruins were discovered during excavations ahead of construction for a new neighborhood near the city of Kiryat Gat. According to a statement from the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA), the monastery dates to the fifth or sixth century C.E., when the region was part of the Byzantine Empire.

“This is the largest and most significant site discovered in the region from the Roman and Byzantine periods,” say excavation managers Shira Lifshitz and Maayan Margulis in the statement.

The researchers think the site was continuously occupied from the early Roman period (around the first century C.E.) until the end of the Byzantine period (in the late sixth century C.E.). However, as Margulis tells Haaretz’s Ruth Schuster, the site’s first human occupation may have occurred some 6,000 years ago, during the Chalcolithic era, or the Copper Age.

During the first few centuries C.E., Christianity slowly spread through the Roman Empire. In the 300s, the emperor Constantine I converted to Christianity, and a new Byzantine capital was founded in his name: Constantinople, which heralded the beginning of Byzantium’s golden age.

One of the ruined buildings at the newly discovered site may have been a monastery. Among its remains, archaeologists found imported wares, metal and glass containers, coins and marble artifacts. In the building’s main aisle, they also unearthed a decorative mosaic floor featuring crosses, lions, doves, flowers, geometric patterns, an amphora (an ancient jug) and the Bible verse.

The monastery’s mosaic floor contains clusters of very small, delicately placed stones, Lifshitz tells Haaretz—which aren’t common in Israeli archaeology.

“The mosaic discovered in Kiryat Gat is one of the most unique ever found in Israel,” says Mark Avrahami, the IAA’s head of artistic conservation, in the statement. The team plans to put the tiled design on public display, but “transferring mosaics is a complex process that requires great skill and precision.”

The mosaic will first be taken to a workshop for conservation, then placed in an open area of Kiryat Gat where the public can view it, says Svetlana Talis, the IAA’s southern district director, in the statement.

“The discovery of the site highlights the historical richness of Kiryat Gat and its surroundings, shedding light on the centrality of the region in antiquity,” Talis says.

The site’s other treasures include a “very sophisticated” wine press, complete with fermentation rooms and collecting vats. Its development and upkeep likely required “significant financial resources, time and a range of professional work and effort,” per the statement. Pottery artifacts and fragments suggest that the settlement may have included a ceramics factory.

The excavation has revealed the remains of ten buildings so far, and the settlement’s true size remains to be seen. As Margulis tells Haaretz, “We just began to excavate the site.”

Sonja Anderson | READ MORE

Sonja Anderson is a writer and reporter based in Chicago.