First-century stone table and weights excavated in Jerusalem

ARCHAEOLOGICAL ARTIFACTS: City of David archaeologists say 2,000-year-old central Jerusalem market found. Stone table top used to measure liquid volumes located in large courtyard in City of David’s Stepped Street, which archaeologists believe was the central market (Amanda Borschel-Dan, Times of Israel).

The measuring table was found in a broad paved central square still undergoing excavation, alongside dozens of stone measurement weights. The sum of the parts has led the IAA archaeologists to conclude that this area of the Stepped Street, a paved 2,000-year-old pilgrims’ path that connects the Siloam Pool with the Temple Mount, would have served as ancient Jerusalem’s main market.

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