Sensational evidence upsetting theories that the Jews deserted Jericho immediately after Joshua’s era has been unearthed by laborers digging on the site of the ancient city, it was revealed today.
The laborers, engaged in planting banana trees, stumbled upon synagogue mosaics whose age is estimated at more than 1,400 years, dating back to 500 A.D. The centre mosaics are inscribed in the Maccabean style, proof that the Jews must have remained in Jericho long after Joshua’s death. The inscriptions have not as yet been deciphered.
Also found by the laborers was a medallion on which was carved a menorah (seven-branched candlestick), a palm tree and a shofer (ram’s horn).
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.