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Forced to Pause: The Sifting Site Faces Closure After Hanukkah

Over the past year, as the State of Israel has been engaged in a war that many have described as existential, each day has brought new casualties among our soldiers, and hundreds of our brothers and sisters remain in captivity in Hamas' dungeons.…
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Milestone Achievement in Our Research: Quantitative Analysis of First Temple Period Pottery

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_9r0pl9iZgU Last Thursday, we reached a significant milestone in our research and publication process. At the annual New Studies in the Archaeology of Jerusalem and its Region conference, organized by the…

A Rare Temple Mount Coin Featuring the Portrait of the Emperor Who Repealed the Harsh Decrees Against Jews After Tisha B’Av 135 CE

On the Ninth of Av it was decreed upon our ancestors that they would not enter the Land [of Israel]; and the Temple was destroyed the first time, and the second time; and Beitar was captured; and the city [of Jerusalem] was plowed. (Ta'anit…
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The Nails that Attest the Presence of Roman Legionary on the Temple Mount

In these days of "Between the Straits," (the days between the 17th of Tamuz and the Ninth of Av), we remember the battles that led to the destruction of the First and Second Temples and ended the last independent Jewish state in the Land of…

Find and Finders of the Month — the Gross Family Found a Pierced Stone Vessel Fragment

During the last summer, we were overwhelmed by the number of visitors and archaeological work. We had hoped to catch up on missed posts during the winter, but then a war broke out… So, meet (slightly belatedly) the Gross family…
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Festschrift Book Launch Event in Honor of Dr. Barkay

On July 16th, we're going to have a Festschrift book launch event in honor of Dr. Barkay at the Menachem Begin Heritage Center. The book can be purchased at the event. The book is in English, but the speeches will be in Hebrew. All are invited,…
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Find And Finder Of The Month: July 2023, The Juarez Family from Mexico Found a Scales Beam Fragment

The Juarez Family with the scales beam In July 2023, the Juarez family from Mexico discovered a fragment of a scales beam. As mentioned in our previous "Find of the Month" post, we are catching up on posts that were delayed due to the war.This…
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A Real Estate Investment which is also a Donation

The following post is unusual in that it is not about archaeology, but about a touching story, Hebrew poetry and also an invitation to invest in real estate in Jerusalem with an amazing return, which is in effect a contribution to the Sifting…
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A 2,000-year-old mysterious clay token

Could this ancient clay token have been used by pilgrims ascending to the Temple in Jerusalem during the Passover festival 2,000 years ago to receive sacrificial components? Discovered more than a decade ago by the Temple Mount Sifting Project,…

Find and Finder of the Month: Brad Schwartz from Seattle Found a Marble Chancel Screen Fragment.

Bradley Schwartz with the chancel screen Our "Find and finder of the month" is back! We were swamped with activity over the summer and meant to catch up after the holidays. But with the outbreak of the war, the classic Israeli phrase "after…
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Unique Weights Discovered in Temple Mount Soil Suggest Presence of Byzantine Church

Recently, the Temple Mount Sifting Project (TMSP) has completed the research and publication of two unique Byzantine coin weights discovered in the sifting. The two weights are of the very rare four keration denomination (about 0.6g). The first…
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Special Gala Event Showcasing New Discoveries from the Temple Mount Sifting Project Research

Dear All, Since the beginning of the war, we’ve received many messages from our friends abroad expressing their concern for our welfare. Thank you all for the warm messages, it encourages us and fills our hearts. As the war erupted, four…