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Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Israel Antiquities Authority Press Release: Major archaeological Discovery at Hirbet Madras

Press Release – 2/2/2011

A Byzantine church and a Large Beautiful Mosaic were uncovered in an Israel
Antiquities Authority Salvage Excavation at Hirbet Madras

A large and beautiful mosaic floor and a church were uncovered in
excavations carried out by the Israel Antiquities Authority at Hirbet Madras
in the Judean coastal plain. Various scholars who visited the site during
the excavation proposed identifying the place as the residence and tomb of
the prophet Zechariah.

In recent months an archaeological excavation was conducted at Hirbet Madras
in the wake of an antiquities theft during which robbers attempted to breach
and plunder an ancient underground complex.

Hirbet Madras is known as the site of a large, important Jewish community
from the Second Temple period until its destruction during the Bar Kokhba
Revolt in 135 CE. Among the remains at the site are those of buildings,
caves, agricultural installations and extensive underground hiding tunnels.
The site was identified by a number of scholars as the location of a major
community. Research of the site was begun in the late nineteenth century
and continues until the present. In the 1980s, a lintel bearing a unique
decoration was discovered at the site. Due to the similarity between it and
an identical lintel from the Hirbet Nevoraya synagogue in the north of the
country, Professor Amos Kloner and the late Dr. Zvi Ilan put forward the
theory that an ancient Jewish synagogue is located nearby.

Recently, in the wake of the illicit excavations by antiquities robbers, the
lintel was rediscovered by inspectors of the Israel Antiquities Authority
Unit for the Prevention of Antiquities Theft. Following the discovery, an
excavation was carried out with the aim of revealing the secrets of the
monumental building which the lintel belonged to. The excavation, on behalf
of the Israel Antiquities Authority, was directed by Amir Ganor and Alon
Klein of the Unit for the Prevention of Antiquities Theft.

A public building of impressive beauty dating to the Byzantine period, in
which there are several construction phases, was exposed in the excavation.
In the last two construction phases the building was used as a splendid
church. However, based on the results of the excavation and as evidenced by
the artifacts, it seems that this church is built inside a large public
compound from the Second Temple period and the Bar Kokhba Revolt, which was
used in the first construction phases of the compound.

The church, in its last phases, was built as a basilica, at the front of
which is a large flagstone courtyard from which worshippers passed into an
entry corridor. Through a shaped opening one enters into the nave where
there were eight breathtaking marble columns that bore magnificent capitals
which were specially imported from Turkey. At the end of the nave is a
raised platform and on either side of the nave are two wide aisles. All of
the floors in the building were adorned with spectacular mosaic floors
decorated with faunal and floral patterns and geometric designs that are
extraordinarily well preserved. Located behind the platform are two rooms,
one paved with a marble floor and the other that led to an underground tomb
devoid of any finds. Branching out beneath the entire building is a
subterranean hiding complex in which there are rooms, water installations,
traps and store rooms. This complex belongs to the large building from the
Second Temple period which the Byzantine church was built into. Among the
artifacts discovered in the hiding complex are coins from the time of the
Great Revolt (66-70 CE) and the Bar Kokhba Revolt (132-135 CE), stone
vessels, lamps and various pottery vessels that are characteristic of the
Jewish population from the community at that time.

As previously mentioned, researchers who visited the site are of the opinion
that the site is the residence and tomb of the prophet Zechariah. Ancient
Christian sources identified the burial place of the prophet Zechariah in
the village of Zechariah, and noted that his place of burial was discovered
in 415 CE. The researchers believe that in light of an analysis of the
Christian sources, including the Madaba Map, the church at Hirbet Madras is
a memorial church designed to mark the tomb of the prophet Zechariah. This
issue will be examined and studied in the near future.

For the past month the Israel Antiquities Authority has been engaged in
uncovering the magnificent structure, unraveling its secrets and preserving
the mosaic floors. In the coming days the spectacular mosaics will be
covered and the planning process will begin for the conservation of the site
and its future presentation to the public, as one of the sites selected to
be included within the framework of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s
national heritage project.

Click here to download high resolution pictures, courtesy of the Israel
Antiquities Authority:
http://www.antiquities.org.il/about_eng.asp?Modul_id=14
Photograph of the mosaic floor which is almost entirely preserved.
General view of the excavation.

For further details, kindly contact Israel Antiquities Authority Acting
Spokesman Itzhak Rabihiya at 054-7999209.

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