(JERUSALEM POST) — An ancient limestone weight, dating back to the Iron Age – the First Temple period, which corresponds to the measurement unit of two shekels at that time, has been discovered at an archaeological excavation next to Jerusalem’s Western Wall, the Israeli Antiquities Authority (IAA) said on Tuesday.
The weight was found beneath Wilson’s Arch and was retrieved from earthen fills by the City of David sifting project. The excavation is nearing its completion and researchers have unearthed many enlightening and unexpected discoveries that will be included in the tour of the Western Wall Tunnels.
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“How exciting, in the month of Tishrei, whose symbol is the scales of justice, to find a souvenir from the First Temple period. Actually now, when coming to the Western Wall is so restricted due to the coronavirus pandemic, this finding strengthens the eternal connection between the Jewish nation, Jerusalem, and the Western Wall while offering us all encouragement,” Mordechai (Suli) Eliav, director of the Western Wall Heritage Foundation, said in a statement.