A necklace pendant dating back some 1,500 years has offered new insights into the daily life of Jews in the Land of Israel during the Byzantine period.
The artifact was discovered some 40 years ago in the village of Arbel in the Galilee by one of its first residents, the late Tova Haviv, and was recently handed over to the Antiquities Authority by a family member, the IAA announced on Wednesday.
Shaped like a triangle, the pendant on one side features the figure of a horse rider whose head is surrounded with a halo. The rider is depicted in the act of throwing a sphere at a female figure on the ground, surrounded by an inscription in Greek reading: “The One God who Conquers Evil.”
Under the horse, the Greek letters I A W O appear, the equivalent of the Hebrew divine name of Y-H-W-H. The opposite side of the object presents an eye pierced by arrows and surrounded by dangerous animals – two lions, a snake, a scorpion and a bird – as well as another Greek inscription reading “One God.”
“The amulet is part of a group of fifth-sixth-century CE amulets from the Levant that were probably produced in the Galilee and Lebanon,” Dr. Eitan Klein, deputy director of the IAA’s Antiquities Theft Prevention Unit, said in a press release.
“This group of amulets is sometimes called ‘Solomon’s Seal,’ and the rider is depicted overcoming the evil spirit – in this case, a female identified with the mythological figure Gello/Gyllou, who threatens women and children and is associated with the evil eye.The eye on the reverse is identifiable as the evil eye, being attacked and vanquished by various means. The amulet was therefore probably used to guard against the evil eye, possibly to protect women and children.”
In spite of the use of non-Jewish symbolism, the fact that the object was found in Arbel, which was a Jewish settlement in the Byzantine period, suggests that the object actually belonged to a Jew.
The settlement features several remains from the time, including a synagogue, and it is mentioned a number of times in the Talmud, as in an episode narrated in the Jerusalem Talmud describing how Rabbi Simeon and Rabbi Hiya went to Arbel to watch the sunrise and to determine how much time passes between the beginning of dawn until full daylight (Brachot 4b).
“Although scholars generally identify the wearers of such amulets as Christians or gnostics, the fact that the amulet was found within a Jewish settlement containing a synagogue in the fifth-sixth centuries CE may indicate that even Jews of the period wore amulets of this type for protection against the evil eye and demons,” said Klein.
The Talmud itself offers several passages featuring testimonies on the use of amulets.
“The Sages taught: What is an effective amulet? It is any amulet that healed one person once, and healed him again, and healed him a third time,” reads a passage of the tractate Shabbat on page 61a.
Klein expressed appreciation for the decision to return the object to the IAA.
“I wish to thank the amulet’s donor for demonstrating good citizenship,” he said, “and I appeal to anyone who has previously found ancient artifacts to hand them over to the National Treasures Center, since objects of this kind tell the story of Israel’s history and heritage and they belong to all Israel’s citizens, both legally and in terms of their cultural value.”
“The amulet is part of a group of fifth–sixth-century CE amulets from the Levant that were probably produced in the Galilee and Lebanon,” Dr. Eitan Klein, deputy director of the IAA’s Antiquities Theft Prevention Unit, said in a press release.
“This group of amulets is sometimes called ‘Solomon’s Seal’ and the rider is depicted overcoming the evil spirit – in this case, a female identified with the mythological figure Gello/Gyllou, who threatens women and children and is associated with the evil eye. The eye on the reverse is identifiable as the evil eye, being attacked and vanquished by various means. The amulet was therefore probably used to guard against the evil eye, possibly to protect women and children.”
In spite of the use of non-Jewish symbolism, the fact that the object was found in Arbel, which was a Jewish settlement in the Byzantine period, suggests that the object actually belonged to a Jew.
The settlement features several remains from the time, including a synagogue, and it is mentioned a number of times in the Talmud, as in an episode narrated in the Jerusalem Talmud describing how Rabbi Simeon and Rabbi Chiya went to Arbel to watch the sunrise and to determine how much time passes between the beginning of dawn until full day-light (Berakhot, 4b).
“Although scholars generally identify the wearers of such amulets as Christians or Gnostics, the fact that the amulet was found within a Jewish settlement containing a synagogue in the fifth–sixth centuries CE may indicate that even Jews of the period wore amulets of this type for protection against the evil eye and demons,” said Klein.
The Talmud itself offers several passages featuring testimonies on the use of amulets.
“The Sages taught: What is an effective amulet? It is any amulet that healed one person once, and healed him again, and healed him a third time,” reads a passage of the tractate of Shabbat on page 61A.
Klein expressed appreciation for the decision to return the object to the IAA.
“I wish to thank the amulet’s donor for demonstrating good citizenship,” he said, “and I appeal to anyone who has previously found ancient artifacts to hand them over to the National Treasures Center, since objects of this kind tell the story of Israel’s history and heritage and they belong to all Israel’s citizens, both legally and in terms of their cultural value.”