A Potsherd from the Temple Mount with an Incision that Resembles the Temple Menorah
Want to help decipher an archaeological mystery?
A very interesting incised design appears on an ancient potsherd found in the sifting of the soil from the Temple Mount . Is it the Temple Menorah? Some kind of floral design? Something else? How can we date this potsherd? When was the incision done? By whom and for what purpose?
If it is a menorah, what can we learn from this artifact?
All these questions are currently being debated by the archaeologists studying this potsherd.
We welcome your suggestions…
If one uses the indentations as the branches, there are six. Since the piece is broken off at the top, maybe the Shamash extended higher somehow.
The piece does appear to be a section of a larger piece.
It appears to be clay fired so it should be dated through carbon dating.
Bob,
Thanks for taking the challenge.
There was no Shamash in the Temple Menorah. The incision was done after the firing of the clay. The potsherd according to its clay fabric texture is probably from the Byzantine period. We cannot use C14 dating with none organic material.
Should “none organic” be “non-organic”?
yes, my spelling error
Perhaps it is the closest the ‘artist’ could come to an accessory that likely more resembled this rendition: http://thedeserttabernacle.blogspot.com/search/label/The%20Golden%20Lampstand%20%28Menorah%29
It’s the tail of the double headed eagle. That was their symbol.
Perhaps a depiction of a scourge?
It looks to be a reed of papyrus.
a picture of Aaron’s budding staff from the Ark of the Covenant? Decorating a vessel used in the Temple.
Looks like a palm leaf to me.
It looks like it could be a diamond or a jewel.
Interesting – I remember reading that ancient Israel used the Olive Tree and the Date Palm as representing the Tree of Good and Evil and the Tree of Life –
Perhaps it is a date palm frond? That would be imagery found on the Temple Mount –
Its a olive tree
This looks remarkably similar to the design on a 1776 William Moulton New Hampshire coin. In the case of the coin, the image depicts a crude drawing of a pine tree.
Does it represent the location of wells and irrigation ditches?
Peacock?
It’s just a design from a oil lamp.
I wonder if the image is right side up. Might the lines in the clay show the orientation of the image as being horizontal?
It would appear to be the representation of a menorah with the seventh branch broken off. Even though the branches may appear to be like flowers, this would be in accordance with the instructions given to Moses in Exodus 25:31-35.
Is this what you are referring to?
http://s16.postimg.org/x7s7cfw2t/Menorah.jpg
Looks like the break line on the left of the shard was the last arm of a menorah that would bear a remarkable resemblance to the straight-arm menorah described by Maimonides with the six straight arms joining the main stem at acute angles. The incised hemispheres at the ends of the intact arms would seem to indicate that the menorah was lit.
A depiction representing “from the one come many”.
The first thing I thought was “delta.” I could see this as being part of a larger engraving depicting some sort of pastoral scene, or map, perhaps. The fact that the lines are asymmetric, and the one on the right is deeper and might be longer seems significant.
Looks like half of a casting mold. Look at the relief gate if you turn it upside down..it allows the mold to fill and excess to ooze out the top during pouring the mold. Could have been a jewelry mold.
The fletchings of an arrow or tail of a bird?