Young Yair Whiteson of Haifa was hiking and found a bronze ring engraved with the image of the goddess wisdom. The ring was turned over to the Israel Antiquities Authority and Yair was commended for his good citizenship. The ring found by Yair will be displayed to visitors as part of IAA summer tours at the Jay and Jeanie Schottenstein National Campus for the Archaeology of Israel in Jerusalem.
Yair Whiteson, 13, from Haifa, was hiking near his home with his father, who had just come back after four months serving in the reserves. While walking near Khirbet Shalala (Mishmar HaCarmel Farm) on Mount Carmel, he suddenly came across an intriguing object.
"I am curious about fossils and rocks and love to collect them," Yair said. "While hiking I noticed a small green item and picked it up. It was corroded, and at first I thought it was just a rusty bolt. I thought about heating it, but then fortunately I understood it was a ring. At home, I saw it had an image on it. At first glance, I thought it was a warrior."
The family contacted Nir Distelfeld, inspector at the Theft Prevention Unit at the Israel Antiquities Authority, who transferred the ring to the National Treasures Department. It was examined and researched by the Israel Antiquities Authority with the assistance of Professor Shua Amorai-Stark, an expert on ancient rings and amulets from the Kaye Academic College. Yair and his family were invited for a tour in the new Jay and Jeanie Schottenstein National Campus for the Archaeology of Israel in Jerusalem and received a commendation for good citizenship.
"On this beautiful ring, preserved in its entirety, is the image of a helmeted naked figure. In one hand she holds a shield, and a spear in the other," explained Distelfeld and Dr. Eitan Klein, deputy director of the Antiquities Theft Prevention Unit, in a statement. "Yair's identification of the figure as a warrior is very close. The figure is the goddess Minerva from Roman mythology, known also as Athena in Greek mythology. This goddess, who was very popular during the Roman period in the Land of Israel, was considered the goddess of war and military strategy and as the goddess of wisdom."
"The small ring, whose metal seems to be bronze, probably belonged to a woman or girl during the Late Roman Period (2nd-3rd Century CE). The findspot was below Khirbet Shalala on a hilltop where there are Roman period remains. There are two burial caves on the quarry’s edge. The ring may have belonged to a woman who lived on this farm. It may have fallen from a quarry worker, or it may have been a burial offering from these nearby graves. There are many possibilities,” according to the researchers.
Khirbet Shalala, the archaeological site near where the ring was found, sits on a hilltop in the center of the Carmel Mountains. Nahal Oren surrounds it on three sides, and nearby is Ein Alon, a perennial water source. The site was explored and documented in the past by the 19th century London-based Palestine Exploration Fund surveyors, by famed Israeli archaeologist Professor Ruth Amiran, and by a Bar-Ilan University expedition led by Mount Carmel expert Professor Shimon Dar. "The ring connects to data gathered here in earlier excavations and surveys, shedding additional light onto this site,” Distelfeld and Klein concluded.
The director of the Israel Antiquities Authority, Eli Askozido, praised Yair's actions. "The admirable act of Yair, who immediately reported the discovery and handed the ring over to the state, demonstrates responsibility and respect for our history. We were very happy to host Yair and his family at the new National Archeology Center in Jerusalem. We gave him a seal that we made from the ring. Yair told us that he wants to be an archaeologist in the future, and we will reserve a place of honor for him here."
The ring found by Yair will be displayed to visitors as part of the IAA summer tours at the Jay and Jeanie Schottenstein National Campus for the Archaeology of Israel, in Jerusalem. Details are available on the Israel Antiquities Authority website.