{"id":161320,"date":"2026-06-15T16:31:14","date_gmt":"2026-06-15T16:31:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/161320\/"},"modified":"2026-06-15T16:31:14","modified_gmt":"2026-06-15T16:31:14","slug":"wondrous-roman-busts-unearthed-in-ancient-winepress-in-northern-israel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/161320\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Wondrous\u2019 Roman busts unearthed in ancient winepress in northern Israel"},"content":{"rendered":"

Archaeologists excavating near the coastal town of Binyamina recently unearthed two remarkably well-preserved marble busts from the ancient Roman period, hidden face-down in the pit of an ancient winepress, the Israel Antiquities Authority said Monday.<\/p>\n

The 1,700-year-old statues, possibly depicting prominent figures from the Greco-Roman world, may have been hidden due to fears that early Christians would destroy them, researchers said.\u00a0The artifacts will be on public display at Tel Aviv\u2019s MUZA \u2013 Eretz Israel Museum beginning this week.<\/p>\n

The discovery of the two protomes \u2013 sculpted heads and upper torsos from the Roman period \u2013 was made three weeks ago, on the last day of an excavation funded by Israel Railways as part of a massive infrastructure project designed to double the coastal rail line between Tel Aviv and Haifa.<\/p>\n

The project, known as the High-Speed Coastal Railway, will eventually allow trains to travel at speeds of up to 250 kilometers per hour and cut travel times between the two cities to about 30 minutes, IAA noted. Like many large construction projects in Israel, the railway expansion required extensive archaeological investigations before work could proceed.<\/p>\n

The excavation uncovered a sprawling Byzantine-era wine-production complex with treading floors, filtration basins and collection pits for fermenting grape juice, Eliran Oren, one of the excavation\u2019s directors, told The Times of Israel.<\/p>\n

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\u201cWe found the types of things that we would normally find in a site like this: jars, coins strewn around, pieces of glass and metal,\u201d said Oren, who directed the dig along with Avishag Reiss. \u201cBut on the last day of the dig, we found this very big surprise. The really big discoveries always turn up on the last day.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\n\t\tArchaeologists Eliran Oren and Michael Sorotskin pose with 1,700-year-old statues discovered in Binyamina, announced on June 15, 2026 (Yoli Schwartz\/Israel Antiquities Authority)<\/p>\n

The statues stand about 55 centimeters (22 inches) tall and weigh roughly 60 kilograms (132 pounds) each, Oren noted.<\/p>\n

When workers told archaeologist Michael Sorotskin that they saw something sticking out of the ground, \u201cthere was a feeling that we were about to discover something that really shouldn\u2019t be there,\u201d Sorotskin said in a statement. \u201cSuddenly, we saw that this was not the usual pottery \u2014 it was marble. Then, slowly, slowly, the two statues were revealed.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m still struggling to find the right words,\u201d Sorotskin added. \u201cIt is simply wondrous.\u201d<\/p>\n

Historic mysteries<\/p>\n

The circumstances surrounding the discovery raised several questions, including the question of who the images represent.<\/p>\n

One protome bears a Greek inscription preserving the name of Lycurgus, a name that is recognized by historians of the era.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne possibility is that this is Lycurgus of Sparta, the founder of the doctrine of education and military discipline for which Sparta is remembered,\u201d Oren said. \u201cBut that\u2019s a complicated thesis because historians only began mentioning him hundreds of years after he supposedly lived, so we don\u2019t even know whether he was a real or fictional character.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another possibility is that the bust represents Lycurgus of Athens, a famed statesman and orator who lived in the 4th century BCE. It is possible that the statue will eventually prove to be one of these figures, but the research \u201cis still in its early stages,\u201d Oren said.<\/p>\n

\t\"\"<\/a>
\n\t\tTwo marble statues, approximately 1,700 years old, are seen from behind following a discovery announced on June 15, 2026. (Yoli Schwartz\/ Israel Antiquities Authority)<\/p>\n

A second mystery concerns how the busts arrived in Binyamina hundreds of years after they were created.<\/p>\n

While researchers dated the statues to the second or third century CE, during the height of Roman rule in the region, the winepress where they were found appears to have been constructed centuries later, Oren noted.<\/p>\n

Most likely, the site was built during the Byzantine period, roughly between the fifth and seventh centuries CE, meaning the statues were already antiques when they were buried.<\/p>\n

Both the statues and the winepress were dated using historical clues, Oren said. More precise dating technologies may be used at a later stage.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese were probably valuable statues that were dear to their owners and preserved for several generations,\u201d Oren said. Quite possibly, they were brought from nearby Caesarea, one of the region\u2019s major Roman cities, he added.<\/p>\n

Such statues were common in wealthy cities at that time, noted Peter Gendelman, an IAA specialist on the Caesarea region.<\/p>\n

\u201cDuring the Roman period, statues of this type were displayed both in public buildings and in the homes of the elite, who sought to connect themselves to the cultural and spiritual world of antiquity,\u201d Gendelman explained in a statement. \u201cNot far from the discovery site, remains of a bathhouse were previously uncovered, and it is possible that the statues decorated a luxurious villa of a Caesarea resident.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\"\"<\/a>
\n\t\tTwo marble statues, approximately 1,700 years old, are displayed following a discovery announced on June 15, 2026. (Yoli Schwartz\/ Israel Antiquities Authority)<\/p>\n

A third question is why the statues were hidden in the winepress. The two figures were buried next to each other with their heads down, indicating that they were intentionally buried that way.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe don\u2019t know yet if it was due to fear of war, or theft, or conflicts that were being fought at the time between the Christian world and the pagan world,\u201d Oren said.<\/p>\n

By late antiquity, as Christianity became the dominant religion of the Roman Empire, many pagan temples and monuments were being vandalized or destroyed, and statues associated with the Greco-Roman world were frequent targets, Oren noted.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat is certain, however, is that the winepress and the statues are not from the same period,\u201d he added. \u201cPerhaps the owners buried them, hoping to come back and collect them at a later point when the situation got quieter. We still don\u2019t know exactly.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\"\"<\/a>
\n\t\tThe Israel Antiquities Authority excavation at the entrance to Binyamina, where two marble statues, approximately 1,700 years old, were found (Yoli Schwartz\/Israel Antiquities Authority)<\/p>\n

The statues will be unveiled for the first time at an archaeological conference this week<\/a> at Tel Aviv\u2019s MUZA \u2013 Eretz Israel Museum, and will be on public display at the museum throughout the summer months. After the initial display, the statues will undergo a process of cleaning, conservation, and further research, IAA said.<\/p>\n


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The war with Iran has been draining for all of us in Israel. But when I heard about a high casualty incident \u2013 ballistic missile impacts in Arad and Dimona that left nearly 200 people wounded \u2013 I drank a cup of coffee, packed a bag, and headed south.<\/p>\n

There, I spoke with Shilgit, the head of an after-school program for underprivileged youth. Standing outside her destroyed center, Shilgit said it was a miracle that no children were hurt and spoke about the community coming together in the hours since.<\/p>\n

As a Times of Israel reporter, I\u2019m committed to telling stories of resilience like Shilgit\u2019s. But my colleagues and I can’t do this alone. If you value work like this, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. Your financial support is essential to keep real human reporting like this going.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Stav Levaton, military reporter<\/p>\n

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