Bronze-age artifacts discovered in Israel near Sea of Galilee

Artifacts dating back 2,200 years ago were discovered in northern Israel, the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) said on Tuesday.

An incense shovel and a jug from the era of the Second Jewish Temple over 2,000 years ago were founded during the dig, held at a western shore of the Sea of Galilee where the ancient Jewish settlement of Magdala was located, the IAA said in a statement.

Christians believe that the town of Magdala is the hometown of Mary Magdalene, who was one of Jesus Christ's followers that, according to the New Testament, witnessed his crucifixion and resurrection. The settlement is mentioned in both Jewish and Christian scriptures.

The shovel was used in the Jewish ritual of burning incense to transfer embers from place to place in the second Jewish Temple in Jerusalem, the IAA said.

Archeologists from the IAA said that the two artifacts were found stored in a warehouse, belonging to a local Jewish family, in the village's pier.

"The shovel and jug were lying next to each other on the floor in one of the rooms at the storehouses adjacent to the dock of a large Jewish settlement on the shore of Sea of Galilee," said Dina Avshalom-Gorni, the chief archaeologist at the site from the IAA.

Avshalom-Gorni said the country has another ten similar shovels from this period.

Excavations in the site started about seven years ago, prior to the construction of a guesthouse on the premises. Endit