The spectacular oil lamp will be presented to the public for the first time at the Jay and Jeanie Schottenstein National Campus for Archaeology in Israel during the upcoming Hanukkah holiday as part of the Heritage Ministry conference.
The researchers: “Just as many of us today possess objects of Jewish significance, so did the owner of the lamp, some 200 years after the destruction of the Temple.”
A rare ceramic oil lamp from the late Roman period, decorated with depictions of the Temple menorah, incense shovel and lulav (a date palm branch used in Jewish ritual), was recently discovered during an archaeological excavation by the Israel Antiquities Authority near the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem. This unique find, which, judging by the soot marks on its spout, was used for lighting some 1.700 years ago, offers a fascinating insight into Jewish cultural and religious life during this period.
“The exquisite artistic workmanship of the lamp, which was found complete, makes it an exceptional and extremely rare piece,” says Michael Chernin, excavation director on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority. “The menorah, incense shovel and lulav are symbols associated with the Jewish connection to the Temple. This find is particularly surprising, as we have very little evidence of the existence of a Jewish settlement in and around Jerusalem in this period. After the Roman Emperor Hadrian suppressed the Bar Kochba rebellion in 135 CE, the Jews were expelled from the city. The lamp from the Mount of Olives is one of the few material traces of a Jewish presence around Jerusalem in the XNUMXrd-XNUMXth centuries CE.”
According to Benjamin Storchan, a research archaeologist at the Israel Antiquities Authority, the lamp belongs to the “Beit Nattif” type, named after its production workshop identified in the 1930s near Bet Shemesh. The lamp’s spout and shoulders were decorated with geometric designs and the center features a detailed depiction of the seven-branched menorah with a tripod base. Oil lamps with menorah decorations are extremely rare and only a few similar Beit Nattif-type lamps can be found in the National Treasures archive. The choice of symbols on the lamp is not accidental. This is a fascinating testimony connecting everyday objects and beliefs among the inhabitants of ancient Jerusalem. It appears that the lamp belonged to a Jew, who purchased it because of his religious affiliation and its commemoration of the Temple.”
“It is clear that the lamp maker put a great deal of time and effort into its decoration,” Storchan adds. “The lamp was made using limestone moulds that were delicately and intricately carved with drills and chisels. The moulds were made in two parts (top and bottom). To create the lamp, the potter would press clay into the moulds and then put them together. Finally, the vessel was fired and ready for use. This method of producing lamps in moulds allowed for refined designs as well as the addition of delicate and intricate decorations.”
“The Temple menorah became a Jewish symbol in the Second Temple period. However, after the destruction of the Temple, the image of the menorah became an important icon in Jewish collective memory both in Israel and in the Diaspora. The menorah occasionally appears on personal objects such as oil lamps, which, being a vessel for illumination, perhaps evoked the feeling of lighting the Temple menorah.
Minister of Heritage, Rabbi Amichai Eliyahu, “This unique oil lamp, which in an exciting way bears the symbols of the Temple, connects the lights of the past with the Hanukkah holiday of today and expresses the deep and enduring connection of the nation of Israel to its heritage and to the memory of the Temple.”