\u201cThe emphasis on the face has led researchers to conclude that it probably had an important cultural or religious significance, but it is not clear what it is,\u201d Re\u2019em said. Most likely, they served as private idols \u2014 perhaps the fertility goddess Asherah \u2014 or household amulets intended to bring blessing, protection or fertility, similar in purpose to a Hamsa symbol.<\/p>\n
Others have suggested these may have been common as toys, \u201cbut I don\u2019t accept that theory,\u201d Re\u2019em said.<\/p>\n
\t The mold was found just before the excavation was completed, as researchers sifted through the last section of soil and debris dating to the First Temple period, Lieber noted. \u201cYou always find the most exciting things at the very end,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n After the mold was discovered, it was transferred to Tamar Gonen, a ceramics conservation and restoration specialist at IAA, who carefully cleaned it to reveal its delicate details. Then, Sviatoslav Klindukhov, a conservation and restoration specialist, created a cast from it, revealing the face of a female figurine with clearly defined features and an elaborate curly hairstyle.<\/p>\n \t The clay figurines generally stand approximately 10 to 20 centimeters high, with surviving traces of pigment indicating that they were originally painted in yellow, red, and black. Other figurines of animals and a horse-and-rider image are also common.<\/p>\n More than a thousand such figurines have been located in the area around Jerusalem, including digs in Lachish or Beit Shemesh, noted Debbi Ben-Ami, Iron Age curator at the IAA. It is not clear whether they were made and used primarily by women, or whether they served entire households, she added.<\/p>\n Until now, molds for these figurines have never been discovered in Jerusalem,\u00a0 raising the question of whether they were manufactured locally or imported from elsewhere, Ben-Ami said.\u00a0The discovery of the mold provides the first direct evidence that at least some were produced within Jerusalem.<\/p>\n \t Researchers believe the mold, and other artifacts found near it, likely dates to the time of the Judean King Uzziah in the 8th century BCE, Lieber said. Uzziah is believed to have launched a construction project in the spot that King Hezekiah continued several decades later, she said.<\/p>\n The figurines likely illustrate a central theme of the challenges to ritual worship in the Temple highlighted in biblical writings from that time, Lieber said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe know about the struggles of Judean kings to enforce the Israelite belief in one God instead of the Canaanite worship practices that still appeared at that time,\u201d Lieber said. \u201cOn the one hand, the Temple service was very central, but we see that people were continuing these rituals, and this is what the Judean kings were talking about. These finds show the real history of Jerusalem and the different layers within society at that time.\u201d<\/p>\n \t Nonetheless, the meaning and function of these figurines are still not fully understood, and remain the subject of scholarly debate, noted Ben-Ami. The discovery of the mold may eventually help answer some of the questions that have plagued researchers for years, she said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Kishle excavation, which has been ongoing for several years, continues to surprise us time and again,\u201d said Re\u2019em and Ayala Zilberstein, the IAA\u2019s directors of the Kishle excavation, in a statement. \u201cIt is one of the most significant archaeological excavations conducted in Jerusalem in recent decades, presenting the city\u2019s history in a clear and continuous sequence \u2014 from the days of the Kings of Judah, through the many periods that shaped Jerusalem, and up to the British Mandate.\u201d<\/p>\n The public is invited <\/a>to help sift through additional dirt and debris taken from the excavation site throughout the summer.<\/p>\n \u201cEach bag is full of shards of pottery and other postcards from the past, and there may be other significant finds waiting,\u201d Lieber said.<\/p>\n
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\n\t\tFemale figurines generally measured between approximately 10 and 20 cm in height (Emil Aladjem\/Israel Antiquities Authority)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/5.The-mold-used-to-produce-the-face-of-the-female-figurinefigurine-640x400.jpg\")
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\n\t\tThe mold used to produce the face of the female figurine, alongside the reconstruction produced from it (Emil Aladjem\/Israel Antiquities Authority)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/14-640x400.jpg\")
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\n\t\tCleaning the mold in the Israel Antiquities Authority conservation laboratories (Emil Aladjem\/Israel Antiquities Authority)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/WhatsApp-Image-2026-07-27-at-11.46.27-AM-640x400.jpeg\")
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\n\t\tEilat Lieber, director and chief curator of the Tower of David Museum, and Amit Re\u2019em, Jerusalem regional archaeologist, IAA, stand in the excavation area in the Kishle Compound in Jerusalem (Tower of David Museum)<\/p>\n
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