Kaleidoscopic 1,600-year-old monastery mosaic on display for first time in the Negev
Roaring lions, gazelles fleeing wolves and a farmer wiping sweat from his forehead are among the scenes from Byzantine Israel depicted on the artifact
Rossella Tercatin is The Times of Israel's archaeology and religions reporter.
A striking 1,600-year-old mosaic depicting animals, plants, and scenes from life in Byzantine Israel is on display for the first time at the Merhavim Regional Council’s headquarters in the Western Negev, the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) announced on Tuesday.
The Be’er Shema (Birsama) mosaic was discovered in 1990 in an agricultural area south of Kibbutz Urim. The artifact recently underwent conservation and was transferred to the headquarters from its original location.
Archaeologists uncovered the mosaic within a monastery complex, which included facilities for wine production, such as a wine press, which probably provided a livelihood for the monks.
“This is a unique mosaic from the Byzantine period (324-638 CE),” IAA archaeologist Shaike Lender, one of Be’er Shema’s excavators, said in a statement. “It presents 55 richly detailed medallions – with mythological characters, baskets of fruit, exotic animals, scenes from everyday life, hunting scenes and more. The mosaic was clearly made by the hand of a true artist. It is comprised of small mosaic stones in a variety of colors, combined with glass and pottery to infuse it with variety.”
The monastery was located on an ancient commercial route connecting the port of Gaza and the Negev town of Halutz.
“It seems that the ancient road upon which this settlement was sited served as a kind of border between the desert and the inhabited part of the country – during the Byzantine period, and perhaps serving as such even earlier, during the Roman period,” Lender noted.
“The excavation showed that this was indeed a large settlement, on the order of several hundred dunams, that served travelers needing a safe place to spend the night, offering protection from potential attacks by raiders from the local Bedouin tribes,” he said.
Roaring lions, giraffes, and gazelles fleeing wolves are among the animals vividly depicted in the mosaic. A farmer wiping sweat from his forehead as he tends his vineyard and two men pulling a donkey and a camel carrying a load are also featured on the artifact, possibly echoing snippets of life in the monastery.
After the excavation concluded, the mosaic was covered to protect it. In recent months, it underwent conservation works by IAA experts.
“Over the ensuing years since its discovery, the mosaic floor’s state of conservation deteriorated,” said IAA Conservation Department head Ami Shahar.
“Given this situation, actions were taken. It was re-exposed, treated, strengthened, and transferred from its original exposed location to the Merhavim Council’s enclosed compound,” he added. “Now, it is fully protected from agricultural and development work, and at long last, it is presented to the public to appreciate.”
The exhibition was inaugurated on Sunday as part of the “Antiquities Right at Home” project by the Heritage Ministry and the IAA.
Heritage Minister Amichay Eliyahu and Merhavim Regional Council Head Shai Hajaj took part in the ceremony attended by students from nearby schools and local residents.
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