Posted on 10/24/2021 6:39:22 AM PDT by george76
Just north of the City of David (ancient Jerusalem), archaeologists believe they have found the first of its kind engraving on a precious gem of a biblical plant known to many as the Balm of Gilead.
Deep underground in a 2,000-year-old drainage ditch next to Jerusalem’s Western Wall, archaeologists say a rare artifact from Second Temple times was uncovered.
“It is a stone seal made of semi-precious amethyst stone with an engraving of a dove and a branch of a tree with fruit on the branch,” said Eli Shukron, former archaeologist of the Israel Antiquities Authority.
What was surprising was that the branch is a branch with fruits that are not recognized from other seals from that period,” Shukon explained.
The seal was found while archaeologists and volunteers were sifting the remains from the drainage ditch at the Emek Tzurim National Park operated by the City of David.
“Once we found the seal with the branch and the fruit, we hypothesized that it was the biblical persimmon fruit plant as mentioned in the Bible and in the sources of the Second Temple period and the Byzantine period,” Shukron said.
This biblical persimmon plant is not related to the orange persimmon fruit of today. It was known in ancient times by several names: Bosem, Balsam and the Balm of Gilead..
“Jerusalem’s primary drainage channel was built under the pilgrimage road. The pilgrimage road started from the Pool of Siloam in the City of David and went up to the Temple on the Temple Mount of the Second Temple period. Apparently, this ring with the seal fell into the drainage ditch 2,000 years ago," Shukron said.
For 1,000 years, ancient Hebrew farmers were the only ones in the world known to cultivate this exotic plant, using it for medicinal and cosmetic purposes.
Guy Ehrlich has been working to revive that biblical agriculture and is the only one in the country growing the biblical persimmon. That’s why Shukon took the stone to Ehrlich’s farm to show it to him.
Ehrlich called the find “stunning.”
“I see here a branch of the biblical persimmon plant, the Balm of Gilead. It’s just amazing! Someone took a branch of the Balm of Gilead and drew it on the stone. It does not remind me of any other plant I know,” Ehrlich said.
Biblical and historical sources also say it was used during the Second Temple period as one of the more expensive ingredients for producing the Temple incense.
“This is the same persimmon that is identified with the biblical persimmon. It is the persimmon that served as the first of the incense ingredients of the Temple and as the anointing oil of the kings and priests,” Ehrlich explained.
Ehrlich currently has 10,000 Balm of Gilead trees at his farm near the Dead Sea. He markets perfume and essential oil from the trees. He also grows frankincense and myrrh.
“There is a wall-to-wall agreement that this is the plant but there is little graphic depiction of it and what you have brought me now is really a greeting from history,” he said to Shukron.
“I felt like someone wrote me a note with a drawing of the fruit of my persimmon plant and sent it to me,” Ehrlich said.
Ping to you.
Yeah in the article they make you sit through an ad and then view the vid if you want to see what the gemstone actually looks like! Thanks for posting the pic here.
It wasn’t that bad. I didn’t see any advertisement and the video showed the jewel in the first 11 seconds.
Very cool. Thanks.
Beautiful amethyst stone. Per video, there is only one man in the country growing the Balm of Gilead now. Nice report about the find. Interesting to learn folks were losing fancy gems down the sewer drain thousands of years ago—and today.
“a wall-to-wall agreement”
I like his language.
Oh, God, reminds me of the time I dropped my diamond ring down the drain in the bathroom - called an emergency plumber (didn't care about the cost) - and told him to hurry up and get this done b/f my husband got home.
Thank God the ring was in the bend in the pipe.
Husband had reminded me many times to not have the ring over an open drain. Cost of plumber was well worth it.
Next time you drop a ring down the drain.
Use a wet vacuum to suck it out.
“I felt like someone wrote me a note with a drawing of the fruit of my persimmon plant and sent it to me,” Ehrlich said.
I can only hope the fruits of my 5,000 year project have a similar reception.
A Mystery like Oak Island????
Thanks stockpirate.
My wife was distressed when she lost an anniversary ring I gave her. She was convinced it was in the washing machine (whenever I want to find the car keys I just reach into any one of her coats), so we had the repairman in several times checking if it was stuck inside the machine.
I found it several months later underneath the stove.
And yet that is and was my story. Have a great day!
The seal — depicting the plant known variously as biblical persimmon, bosem or balsam, or even the Balm of Gilead — was discovered at the Foundation Stones of the Western Wall, according to a statement released Thursday.
According to the Israel Antiquities Authority, the biblical persimmon plant is unrelated to the modern-day fruit. It was used at the time of the Second Temple as an ingredient to produce the temple incense, perfume and other balms and medicines.
First-century Jewish historian Josephus Flavius wrote that Mark Antony gave Cleopatra received valuable persimmon groves that formerly belonged to King Herod. Scholars believe that this was so she could have an unlimited supply of the expensive balm extracted from the plant.
Some experts believe the plant was given to King Solomon by the Queen of Sheba, the IAA said.
Very good photo's from various perspectives and more description at this link.
I noticed that the head of the dove looks like the fruit.
I suspect if you could actually look at the stone in optimal light it might be easier to see all aspects. View form 2 eyes beats anything seen on a computer screen.
This is a very recent discovery.
I’ve never seen a Balsam tree.
We have a 60 year old Hachiya persimmon tree at my dad’s house. It seldom missed bearing fruit except the past few years.
It has some kind of disease that has killed part of the tree. I cut the diseased portion back leaving a 2 ft trunk which put out new growth. Now another portion of the tree is dying. It does have fruit this year, on the new growth portion.
Hachiya persimmon is a seedless tree and is described as a Japanese Persimmon.
I normally peal and dry 200 of the persimmons per year. Did not have fruit last year. I love to eat them fresh, but they all get ripe soon after 1st frost so they don’t last long.
What kind of bird is engraved on the stone? Looks like some sort of water bird.
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