According to a statement from the Temple Mount Sifting Project, two coin weights discovered on the ground at the foot of the Temple Mount in Jerusalem indicate that a church may have previously occupied the ground.
Archaeologist and Sifting Project researcher Haim Shaham, now pursuing a doctorate, conducted the study. The most recent issue of the Israel Numismatic Research magazine has published the details of the find.
Per the TMSP news statement, the two artifacts are of the very uncommon 4 keration denomination, which is equivalent to about 0.6g in today’s measurements.
One of the weights is made of purple glass and has an imperial stamp that was ultimately lost to history. According to the information released, there is speculation that this specific currency was struck in Constantinople, the former capital of the Byzantine Empire, and transported to Jerusalem before the Muslim invasion.
According to the announcement, the other one is made of brass and has a Greek Kappa and Delta symbol that is inlaid with silver. According to the press release, the researchers responsible for the findings have uncovered approximately 12 coin weights dating back to the Byzantine period that were recovered on the Temple Mount.
The discovery has not been widely publicized because authorities often downplay the significance of a Christian existence on the Temple Mount, which has not been a significant focus of research there.
Byzantine floor tiling, often reserved for monumental structures, has been abundantly discovered by the Sifting Project. Haim Shaham told a media outlet that they discovered fragments of chancel screens—an aspect of early church architecture—as well as many mosaic stones from the Byzantine period, suggesting that someone had put a lot of effort into the flooring.
Despite the abundance of Byzantine evidence suggesting activity, the general belief held until about ten years ago that the Temple Mount remained empty during the Byzantine era. It has been discovered that it is comfortably related to a church, although there was a lot happening throughout the Byzantine period. The official understanding of this region of Israel’s history requires further inquiry. Furthermore, additional effort is necessary to comprehend the whole of human history.
