Toddler finds a 3,800 year old biblical artifact

Saint Scarab!

During a family outing in Tel Azekah in Israel last month, Ziv Nitzan, 3 years old, came across a former scarab amulet dating from 3,800 years when she walked along a path with her family.

Daphna Ben-Tor, a specialist in the old amulets and seals, then checked that it was a Canaanite scarabe dating from the average bronze age.

Like Azekah, where the toddler has uncovered the artifact in the form of a manure of manure, is a well-known archaeological site in the Israeli Shephelah region where excavations took place for a little more than a decade.

If Azekah seems familiar, it is important in the biblical history of David and Goliath of the first book of Samuel.

On April 2, the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) shared on Facebook that the young resident Nitzan de Ramot Meir had met the important element.

In a press release shared in the position of social media, the child’s older sister, Omer, recalled: “We were walking along the way, then Ziv leaned, and all the stones surrounding her, she picked up this particular stone.”

Omer continued: “When she rubbed it and removed the sand, we saw that something was different on this.”

Omer then called on his parents to “come and see the beautiful stone”, and the family realized that they had “discovered an archaeological discovery”.

They then “immediately reported this” at IAA.

Expert Ben-Tor revealed the meaning behind the article, as seen in the aforementioned Facebook publication.

She explained that Canaanite scarabs were used at the average Bronze Age as seals and amulets, found in “Graves, in public buildings and in private houses”.

Sometimes they carry “symbols and messages that reflect religious beliefs or status,” she added.

Scarabe Beetles, as Ben-Tor noted, held sacred status in ancient Egypt, symbolizing a new life. This belief arose from their habit of laying eggs in dung balls.

In particular, the Egyptian word for Scarab comes from the verb meaning “to be born” or “to create”.

After hearing about this major discovery, Oded Lipschits of the University of Tel Aviv, who supervised the archaeological excavations in Tel Azeka, met Ziv and the Nitzan family.

He noted, as we see in the Facebook declaration, that his team has been digging on the site for 15 years.

Discoveries like this, he said, indicate that such Azeka was one of the most important cities of the low Judeal lands during the ages of the medium and late bronze.

The Israeli Minister of Heritage Amichai Eliyahu, in accordance with the post, agreed that the complex seal that the child noticed “connects us to a great history”.

“The scarab found by Ziv joins a long list of Egyptian and Canaanite discoveries discovered here which attest close ties and cultural influences between Canaan and Egypt during this period,” said Lipschits.

During the last month, ZIV was honored by a certificate for exceptional citizenship.

The old charm that the child has brought to light will be presented with other historic artifacts of Egypt and Canaan in a unique Passover exhibition in Jerusalem.

The IAA organized this exhibition at the National Campus in Jay and Jeanie Schottenstein for the archeology of Israel.

Many of these articles, dating from the time of Egypt and Canaan, will be for the first time on a public exhibition.

The director of the AIA, Eli Escusido, said that thanks to Little Ziv, “everyone can see and appreciate” this special addition of Scarab.