It has taken him more than a decade, but Italian-Israeli archeologist Prof. Emmanuel Anati now believes his controversial view that the biblical Mount Sinai is in Israel’s Negev desert rather than Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula will soon be adopted by the Vatican.

New research has found that the sea level of the Mediterranean has been rising and falling over the past 2,500 years.

Remains of a prehistoric building, the earliest ever discovered in the Tel Aviv region of Israel are estimated to be between 7,800 and 8,400 years old.

Just four days ahead of Christmas, when billions of people the world-over will be celebrating the birth of Nazareth-resident Jesus Christ, Israeli archaeologists have announced their discovery of a Jesus-era house.
The Israeli Antiquities Authority said the find “sheds light on the way of life at the time of Jesus” in the Jewish settlement of Nazareth, where Christians believe Jesus grew up.
The find marks the first time researchers have uncovered the remains of a home in Nazareth from that time period, the Israeli Antiquities Authority said in a statement.
“The building that …

Israel displayed for the first time Wednesday a collection of rare coins charred and burned from the Roman destruction of the Jewish Temple nearly 2,000 years ago.
About 70 coins were found in an excavation at the foot of a key Jerusalem holy site. They give a rare glimpse into the period of the Jewish revolt that eventually led to the destruction of the Second Jewish Temple in A.D. 70, said Hava Katz, curator of the exhibition.
The Jews rebelled against the Roman Empire and took over Jerusalem in A.D. 66. After …

Archaeologists carrying out excavations prior to road-widening near Hamovil junction in northern Israel discovered a weapons cache including submachine guns and ammunition on Monday.
Four submachine guns, made in Egypt and stamped in Arabic “Port Said” and the number “17,” were found inside a tire, wrapped in oiled cloth. With them were 50 submachine gun 9-millimeter bullets and a khaki shirt.
At first the archaeologists thought the guns had been used by Arab soldiers in the battles of 1948. About a year ago outposts were found in digs in the area, …

The ancient footprints of the artisans who built a 1,700-year-old mosaic floor in the city of Lod was discovered recently by the Israel Antiquities Authority.
The mosaic floor is one of the biggest and most remarkable mosaics to be discovered in Israel. The mosaic, spanning 180 square meters, is composed of colorful and detailed depictions of animals, plants and boats.
The impressive mosaic, discovered in 1996, is believed to have decorated the home of a wealthy man during the Roman period.
Following the discovery of the mosaic, it was covered back up …

As usual during the Jewish holidays, the Israeli public has been inundated with reports of “amazing discoveries” in excavations in Jerusalem. One might dismiss them as a combination of public relations and the need to fill the holiday newspapers, but in fact they attest to a worrying process whereby archaeological research in Jerusalem is being made shallow and subordinated to narrow interests of time and place.
After a period of official and programmatic archaeology following the unification of the city in 1967, it appeared that Israeli archaeology had found the correct …

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In what was slated to be the site of a new 122-room hotel, archaeologists say they have discovered one of the world’s oldest synagogues in Northern Israel.
The site, which was unearthed as preparations were being made for construction of the hotel near the Sea of Galilee, is believed to date back some 2000 years from 50BCE to 100CE.
In the middle of the 120 square meter main hall of the synagogue archaeologists discovered an unusual stone carved with a seven branched menorah . “We are dealing with …

Israeli archaeologists say they have found a miniature precious stone carved with the image of Alexander the Great.
The stone, dating to the Hellenistic period, was found at the Tel Dor excavation site south of Haifa, the Israeli news Web site Arutz Sheva reported Wednesday.
The stone is less than a centimeter long (less than a half-inch) and less than a half-centimeter wide, Ayelet Gilboa, one of the archaeologists directing the work, told the news Web site. The type of  gemstone wasn’t described.
Gilboa said the carved image shows a young and energetic face, …