Dekel Ben-Shitrit holds the bronze ring he found while weeding in a garden. Credit: Nir Distelfeld/Israel Antiquities Authority
Posted on 02/28/2018 5:31:11 PM PST by SJackson
About 700 years ago, a bronze ring depicting St. Nicholas — the saint who inspired the modern-day figure of Santa Claus — slipped off the finger of its owner, likely either a crusader or a pilgrim traveling to the Holy Land. The ring lay buried in the dirt for hundreds of years, until a gardener in Israel found it last week while weeding in Lower Galilee.
The gardener, Dekel Ben-Shitrit, 26, turned the unusual ring over to Israel's National Treasures Department, where archaeologists dated the metal artifact to between the 12th and 15th centuries, during the Middle Ages. [The Holy Land: 7 Amazing Archaeological Finds]
"This special ring is amazingly well preserved and will contribute a great deal to science," Yana Tchekhanovetz, an archaeologist with the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) who specializes in the Byzantine period, said in a statement.
This bronze ring bearing the likeness of St. Nicholas dates to the Middle Ages. This bronze ring bearing the likeness of St. Nicholas dates to the Middle Ages. Credit: Clara Amit/Israel Antiquities Authority A preliminary analysis suggests that the ring, which depicts the face of a bald man next to a staff, shows the likeness of St. Nicholas next to a bishop's crook, the saint's hallmark, Tchekhanovetz said.
Dekel Ben-Shitrit holds the bronze ring he found while weeding in a garden. Credit: Nir Distelfeld/Israel Antiquities Authority
"In the Eastern Christian world, St. Nicholas is considered the patron saint of travelers, including pilgrims and sailors," Tchekhanovetz said.
(Excerpt) Read more at livescience.com ...
Thanks SJackson.
Cool. Makes me wonder if the crusader or traveler made it back to Europe.
It’s an interesting question. Sometimes unbelievable finds are made, though:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ring_of_Silvianus
Fascinating. Thanks!
My pleasure.
I found the Tolkien connection especially interesting.
Tolkien once said, “Middle Earth is Europe.”
I’m pretty sure I know which countries Tolkien had in mind for the Shire and Mordor. :-))
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