Update from the Field

Crusader Arrowhead Found

Yesterday, Jakob Okun, age 14, found a fantastic Crusader arrowhead. He came with classmates from Bi-Cultural Day School located in Stamford, CT USA.

Crusader era arrowhead found at the Temple Mount Sifting Project

Could it have been used by the Knights Templar??

Crusader era arrowhead

In scholarly texts, the Temple Mount is commonly associated with the Knights Templar in the Crusader Period (1099-1187 CE). The Knights used the Al-Aqsa Mosque as their headquarters and turned the large southeastern substructure into stables for their horses, calling it “Solomon’s Stables.” The earth we are sifting originated in the area of Solomon’s Stables and has yielded many remnants of Crusader activity, including arrowheads like this one! We’ve also found many horseshoe nails and armor scales typical of European medieval cavalry. This is the first archaeological evidence we have of the Knights Templar in Solomon’s Stables.

Crusader era iron horseshoe nails which belonged to the horses of the knights Templar that resided in Solomon’s Stables.

The finds from our project greatly contribute to the archaeological and historical research of the Temple Mount during the Crusader Period. We discovered the biggest and most varied collection of silver coins ever found in Jerusalem from this period; among them are extremely rare coins and a one-of-a-kind Knights Templar medallion. The Crusader finds include many cruciform pendants, pottery and architectural remains. Many opus sectile floor tiles -that were installed in the Dome of the Rock and dismantled in later periods – were recovered in the sifting, enabling us to replicate the elaborate floor of the Dome of the Rock during the Crusaders’ times.

Arrowheads from the Second Temple Period

For more information on our other finds, such as these arrowheads from the Second Temple Period, check out the  “What have you found so far?” section of our crowdfunding website for our first publication.