Samford Archaeological Dig Unearths Ancient Jewish Village

An archaeological dig by Samford University has unearthed the remains of an ancient Jewish village this week in northern Israel. The site is five miles northwest of Nazareth.

The expedition was led by Samford University religion professor James Riley Strange. He discovered the unfamiliar Jewish village of Shikhin in the Galilee sector of Israel. The team  found ancient houses, synagogue and evidence of pottery.

The findings are important as they offer great clues about the Galilean Jewish village life and its economy at the time when both Christianity and the Judaism of the Talmud began.

"The site of the discovery has been abandoned, except for agriculture, ever since the mid-fourth century A.D.," said Strange. "The buildings came down and people used its stones in other nearby buildings, then those buildings were destroyed and the stones were re-used again."

It was in 2011 that a survey was conducted on the site and the first excavation was made in 2012.

According to the Jewish historian Flavius Josephus, one of the earliest Jewish settlements in the Galilles during the Hasmonaean dynasty (140-63 B.C) was 'Shikhin'. It is referred as the village of potters by the Talmud.

This finding proves that the site was a village of potters as the excavators uncovered several moulds that were used to make oil lamps. They discovered a small piece of an oil lamp that had Menorah and palm branch (Lulav) engraved on it.

"This international, cultural heritage project is a boon to the field of archaeology and historic preservation as well as a significant contribution to a richer understanding of human civilization and society," said J. Bradley Creed, Samford provost and executive vice president.