Recostructed inlays
A collection of ivory fragments dating back to Bayis Rishon, one of only a very few ever discovered anywhere in the world and the first unearthed in Jerusalem, was found in excavations by the Antiquity Authority and the Tel Aviv University in the Givati parking lot of the City of David, in the national park surrounding the Jerusalem walls. These digs were funded by the City of David organization and are located just outside the Dung Gate.
These remnants of ivory, considered in the ancient world as one of the most expensive raw materials, even dearer than gold, were found in the ruins of a very large building that is thought to have been the residence of prominent people. The ivory fragments are thought by the experts to have adorned wood furniture of the residents as inlays.
The director of the excavation says, "Up till today, we have known of ivory inlays only from capital cities of the large kingdoms in the times of Bayis Rishon, such as Nimrod, capital of Assyria, or Samaria which was the capital of the kingdom of Yisroel. Now, for the first time, Jerusalem can also be added to those capitals."
The impressive building in which these ivory plates were discovered was destroyed in a huge fire, apparently during the churban of Bayis Rishon. The ivory fragments were found shattered to small shards and some were burnt. In the course of the excavation, during the wet sifting which took place behind the nation park of Emek Tzurim, no less that 1,500 such slivers were discovered and subsequently reconstructed through painstaking work.
"At the end of the rejoining process of hundreds of pieces, we succeeded in understanding that this collection included relics of some 12 square plaques measuring 5 cm by 5 cm. (about 2.5" by 2.5") with a thickness of 0.5 cm at best and were originally inlaid in wooden furniture."
The ivory shards which were found were not the only unique exclusive items. An agate seal was also found in the building, as well as pitchers filled with vanilla flavored wine, sealed with an inscription "Natan Melech for the King." Adorned stone and wooden articles were thought to be parts of large pieces of furniture.
Engraved ivory pieces are an outstanding and rare find in the field of archaeology, very exclusive because of the source of ivory. A microscopic test carried out by Harel Shochat from the Haifa University showed indeed that it came from an African elephant trunk.
Fragments
