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Thursday, May 05, 2011

Second-Temple-era ruins in the Jordan Valley?

SECOND-TEMPLE-ERA RUINS in the Jordan Valley?
Ancient Roman ruins found at Jordan Valley building site

English.news.cn 2011-05-04 20:55:22 FeedbackPrintRSS

JERUSALEM, May 4 (Xinhua) -- Construction crew building a clinic in a Jordan Valley Palestinian village have uncovered structures of the Roman and Byzantine era, Israel's Civil Administration, the Defense Ministry department responsible for managing civilian affairs between Palestinian and Israeli bodies said Wednesday.

COGAT (Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories) officials, in reviewing a German aid request to build a health clinic in Jiftlik, came upon the 2,000-year-old buildings, which contained ceramic shards, basalt tools, a preserved furnace and 40 historical coins, according to an official statement.

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Details are sparse, but apparently the excavation has been going on for some time. This video shows the site and includes some narrative by archaeologist Yuval Peleg. He mentions only Byzantine ruins and says they will keep digging to see what else they find.