The Israel Museum is an art and archaeological museum in Jerusalem, Israel.
It was established in 1965 as Israel's largest and foremost cultural
institution, and one of the world's leading encyclopaedic museums.
It is situated on a hill in the Givat Ram neighborhood of Jerusalem, adjacent
to the Bible Lands Museum, the Knesset, the Israeli Supreme Court, and the
Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
The Samuel and Saidye Bronfman Archaeology Wing tells the story of the ancient
Land of Israel, home to peoples of different cultures and faiths, using unique
examples from the museum's collection of Holy Land archaeology, the foremost
holding in the world.
Highlights on view include Pilate Stone, "House of David" inscription (9th
century BCE), a comparative display of two shrines (8th–7th century BCE); the
Heliodorus Stele (178 BCE), royal Herodian bathhouse (1st century BCE);
Hadrian's Triumph: inscription from a triumphal arch (136 CE), the Mosaic of
Rehob (3rd century CE) and gold-glass bases from the Roman catacombs (4th
century CE); and the Ossuary of Jesus son of Joseph.[9]
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Anthropoid Clay Coffins.
The anthropoid ceramic coffins of the Late Bronze Age Levant are a
unique burial practice that is a synthesis of Egyptian and Near Eastern
ideologies.
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The coffins date from the 14th to 10th centuries BCE and have been
found at Deir el-Balah, Beth Shean, Lachish, Tell el-Far’ah, Sahab,
and most recently in the Jezreel Valley in 2013.
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The coffins show Egyptian influence in the Ancient Near East and
exhibit many Egyptian qualities in the depictions on the face masks on
the lids.
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See more at
Anthropoid ceramic coffins - Wikipedia.
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Horned Altar.
One of the most significant discoveries at Tel Beer-sheba is that of a
horned altar, the first ever unearthed in Israel.
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Tree of Life Goddess.
This 7,500 year-old goddess figurine from Neve Yam is among the world’s
earliest evidence for established religion, the origins of which date
back to the agricultural revolution, around 10,000 years ago.
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It is similar to contemporaneous figurines, especially the one
discovered at Hagosherim, some 100 km away.
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The striking resemblance between the two objects indicates that the
cult of the goddess was widespread by this time.
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In later periods, the combination of a plant motif (the Tree of Life)
with the image of a woman (the goddess) became a common image
throughout the Ancient Near East, where it represented the goddess
Asherah.
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See more at
Asherah - Wikipedia.
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Carved stone masks.
These carved stone masks representing a human face belong to a rare
group of masks from the Neolithic period that were discovered in and
around the Judean Desert and are considered the oldest masks in the
world.
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Based on the similarity with the plastered and decorated skulls that
appeared in sites from the same period, scholars assume that the masks
represented the spirits of the dead and were used in religious-social
ceremonies, such as ancestor worship, and in magic rites related to
healing and divination.
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Pre-Pottery Neolithic A.
Statue (right). Gilgal. Limestone. L: 36 cm; W: 17 cm. Accession number:
K10343.
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Pottery Neolithic.
Pebble figurine (left). Shaar HaGolan. Limestone. H: 22 cm; W: 10 cm.
IAA: 1979-493.
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Figurine (center).
Figurine. Kabri. Late Neolithic. Bone. H: 4 cm; W: 1.5 cm. IAA:
1956-915.
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Birth of the gods.
«Gods - beings that dominate the natural world and human activity -
appeared some 8.000 years ago in conjunction with the emergence of
agricultural communities, which had learnd to control their physical
environment and exploit its resources. The cult of these communities
centered around a female goddess identified with the earth; the training
of and caring for animals; and abundance and fertility. The male god,
represented by both human and animal figurines, is thought to have been
the goddess's spouse or son.»
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The male god.
Male figurine (left). Beersheba. Chalcolithic period, 4500–3500 BCE.
Ivory. H: 33; W: 5.3. IAA: 1958-579.
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The goddess.
Violin-shaped female figurines (left). Gilat. Chalcolithic period,
4500–3500 BCE. Stone. H: 17–22; W: 7.6–12.2 cm. IAA: 1992-1211,
1975-1032, 1992-1212.
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The En Gedi temple.
The Chalcolithic Temple of Ein Gedi is a Ghassulian public building
dating from about 3500 BCE. It lies on a scarp above the oasis of Ein
Gedi, on the western shore of the Dead Sea, within modern-day Israel.
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The temple was discovered in 1956 by Yohanan Aharoni during an
archaeological survey of the Ein Gedi region.
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The excavations at the temple have unearthed a compound consisting of
a main building on the north, a smaller one in the east, and a small
circular structure, 3 metres (9.8 ft) in diameter and probably serving
some cultic purpose, in the center.
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See more at
Chalcolithic Temple of Ein Gedi - Wikipedia.
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Chalcolithic burial Cave in Peki'in in the Upper Galilee.
The cave is narrow 17 m long and 7 m wide with three different levels.
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It contained many finding including Ossuaries decorated with human
faces. Dated 4,500-3,500 BCE.
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Ossuaries and Incense Burners.
Pottery Ossuaries and Incense Burners, 4500-3500 BC.
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Religion and ritual.
Figurine of a worshiper (center). Tel Jarmuth. Early Bronze Age,
2650–2300 BCE. Pottery. H: 2 cm. IAA: 1988-145.
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Ritual objects.
Wall bracket for a lighting implement or incense burner, decorated with
a bull in relief (top). Megiddo. Late Bronze Age, 13th century BCE.
Pottery. H: 45; W: 14 cm. IAA: 1937-876.
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The gods of Canaan.
Figurine of the storm god (right). Megiddo. Late Bronze Age, 15th–13th
century BCE. Bronze. H: 13 cm. IAA: M-1083.
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Shrine of the stelae.
A small shrine with a single room was unearthed in Hazor’s lower city.
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Cultic objects from the Shrine of the Stelae.
Cultic objects from the Shrine of the Stelae. Hazor. Late Bronze Age,
15th–13th century BCE. Basalt.
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In the wall opposite the entrance, there was a niche containing a row
of standing stones (masseboth), with an offering table and a figure
carrying a bowl in front. The crescent on the figure’s breast was a
symbol of the moon god Sin. The central stone features a pair of hands
venerating moon symbols. The stones, as well as the ones found outside
the temple, were commemorative, perhaps recalling a king, priest, or
ancestors.
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The lion relief on the right belongs to an earlier phase of the
shrine.
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The Israelites.
Bowl decorated with animal figures (left). Tell el-Hammah. Iron Age II,
10th century BCE. Pottery. Accession number: K11174.
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Model shrine.
Model shrine. Trans-Jordan. Iron Age II, 9th–8th century BCE. Pottery.
H: 23.5; W:18; L: 21 cm. IAA: 1940-286.
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Models of this type reflect actual temple architecture. Their capitals
and columns closely resemble some of the architectural elements found
in the excaation. The function of the models, however, is not clear.
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The dove portrayed on this object probably represents the goddess
Asherah. The models recall the biblical description of the entrance to
Solomon’s Temple, with its pair of free-standing columns, “Yakhin” and
“Boaz.”
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Model shrine.
Model shrine. Trans-Jordan. Iron Age II, 9th–8th century BCE. Pottery.
H: 29; W: 30 cm. Accession number: 82.24.415.
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Edomite clay stands from Hazeva.
Ritual stand decorated with animal figures (center left). Hazeva. Iron
Age II, late 7th – early 6th century BCE. Pottery. H: 53; Diam: 23 cm.
IAA: 1995-101.
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Holy of Holies from the sanctuary at Arad.
Holy of Holies from the sanctuary at Arad. Iron Age II, 8th century BCE.
Limestone. IAA: 1967-1401, 1967-1402, 1967-1403.
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A small sanctuary was uncovered in the Arad fortress on Judah’s
southern border. It is the only Judahite temple ever discovered.
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Like most Ancient Near Eastern shrines, including the Temple in
Jerusalem, it was composed of several spaces reflecting a hierarchy of
sanctity.
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Deep inside was the Holy of Holies, with a smooth standing stone
(biblical massebah), possibly signifying God’s presence, and two
altars still bearing the remains of the last incense offered there.
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The sanctuary was intentionally buried in the time of King Hezekiah,
who sought to abolish all public worship outside the Temple in
Jerusalem.
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The Arameans.
Cultic stele. Bethsaida. Iron Age II, 9th–8th century BCE. Basalt. H:
115; W: 59; D: 31 cm. IAA: 1997-3451/980.
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The Arameans comprised a number of kingdoms based north of Israel. The
most prominent of these was Aram-Damascus, portrayed in the Bible as
Israel’s bitter enemy.
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This carved stone slab was discovered in the capital of the Aramean
kingdom of Geshur, near the city gate. The bull-headed figure wearing
a sword probably symbolized either the chief god Hadad, who was the
storm god responsible for rainfall, or the moon god, who was
responsible for the swelling of the rivers. Alternatively, it may have
represented a fusion of the two.
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Iron Age II.
8th–6th century BCE.
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Figurine of a potter (left). Akhzib. Iron Age II, 8th–6th century BCE.
Pottery. H: 12; W: 5; L: 5 cm. IAA: 1944-58.
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Model shrine (center). Akhzib. Iron Age II, 8th–6th century BCE.
Pottery. H: 17; L: 8.8 cm. IAA: 1944-46.
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Figurine of woman bringing offering (right). Akhzib. Iron Age II,
8th–6th century BCE. Pottery. H: 18; Diam: 6 cm. IAA: 1961-563.
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Figurine of woman bringing offering (far right). Akhzib. Iron Age II,
8th–6th century BCE. Pottery. H: 19; Diam: 5 cm. IAA: 1944-50.
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Mold for Making Masks, Special Display.
Archaeologist Michaël Jasmin explains to us the importance of his
discovery of this mold for making masks in the Phoenician town of
Achzib.
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This mold, the only one of its kind known to date, was recently
discovered on the floor of a cultic building in the Phoenician town of
Achzib.
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It was used for the mass-production of pottery masks depicting male
faces. Masks of this type have been found mainly in Phoenician tombs
throughout the Mediterranean.
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Too small to have been worn on the face, they may have been hung on
the tomb walls, on wooden statues, or on coffins to drive out demons
and evil spirits.
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The Special Display includes masks found in graves in Achzib. Almost
all were produced in molds like this one.
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Head of Athena.
Head of Athena, found in Tel Naharon (northern Beth Shean), 2nd century
AD. Marble from the island of Thassos in the Aegean Sea. H: 64; W: 38.
IAA: 1978-505.
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On 5 October 2023, a 40-year old Jewish-American tourist was arrested
at the museum after hurling a marble head of the Greek goddess Athena
and a statue of a griffin grasping the wheel of fate of the Roman god
Nemesis into the floor, shattering the latter artefact.
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Police described him as a radical who considered the artefacts “to be
idolatrous and contrary to the Torah”, while his lawyer claimed he was
suffering from Jerusalem syndrome.
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The damaged artefacts, both of which dated from the Second Century AD,
were placed under restoration.
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Reconstruction of a church bema (presbytery).
Reconstruction of a church bema (presbytery). 4th–6th century CE.
H: 520; W: 940; D: 740 cm. Bequest of Dan Barag, Jerusalem.
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The church bema reconstructed here comprises original
architectural elements excavated at 17 different sites. The pieces fit
together perfectly, as if they came from the same building.
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Reconstruction of the Susiya synagogue bema (podium).
Reconstruction of the Susiya synagogue bema (podium). Southern
Hebron Hills. 5th–8th century CE. Marble. W: 490; D: 290 cm.
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The magnificent synagogue of Susiya in the southern Hebron hills stood
for hundreds of years and underwent many renovations. Its
bema (podium) was built next to the long northern wall, which
featured three arched niches. The central one likely held the Torah
Ark, and the two others each held a menorah. The bema’s carved
and incised motifs included menorahs, animals, and plants. Numerous
donor inscriptions on the walls and floor attest to the community’s
active participation in the building’s construction.
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The posts, chancel screens, carved decorations, menorah, and floor
panels exhibited here were all found in excavations of the Susiya
synagogue. The human and animal images that originally decorated the
synagogue were defaced in the 8th century, when figurative art was
prohibited under Muslim rule.
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Synagogue floor (bottom). Beth Shean synagogue. 5th–7th century CE.
Stone. H: 276; W: 435 cm. IAA: 1963-934/1-3.
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See also
Sources
Location
