Artifacts were found in a cave near Jerusalem that pagans used for “conversations with the dead”
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Near Jerusalem, researchers found objects that pagans used for the magical ritual of talking to the dead. This is reported by Live science. More than 120 oil lamps, three human skulls and blades of axes and spears were found by archaeologists in the gorges of the Teomim cave near Jerusalem. The found objects indicate that the place was used in the Roman era for “conversations with the dead”. Researchers believe that eerie rituals took place in the Teomim Cave, about 30 kilometers west of Jerusalem, between the 2nd and 4th centuries AD. Researchers believe the eerie rituals took place between the 2nd and 4th centuries AD According to Boaz Zissou, an archaeologist at Bar Ilan University in Israel, most of the Jews who lived in the region were exterminated or expelled by the ruling Roman Empire after a revolt known as the Bar Revolt -Kohba, between 132 and 136 AD. The Romans then repopulated the region with people from other parts of their empire, probably from Syria, Anatolia, and Egypt. “The new pagan population brought with them new ideas, customs and, obviously, necromancy,” says Boaz Zissou. Talking with the dead The huge Teomim cave has been visited by people since prehistoric times. Jewish rebels used it as a hiding place from the Romans during the Bar Kokhba revolt. During the excavation, the researchers discovered three treasures with gold and silver coins of that time. The huge cave of Theomim was frequented by people from prehistoric times Necromancy was considered evil and was often banned in the Roman Empire. However, near many ancient cities there were secret places of “oracles” where you could “talk to the dead”. One such place was a cave. “The conditions were perfect there. The cave is a bit remote but not too far from the main road, it’s deep but not too deep, and at the end of it is a deep shaft that was believed to be a connection to the underworld,” Zissou said. rituals Lamps, human skulls, and weapon parts were located in the crevices of the huge cave, often so far apart that researchers needed long poles with hooks on the end to retrieve them. The ancients probably placed them there with poles as well. Sometimes the lamps were placed in ancient bronze bowls The crevices are too deep for oil lamps to shed much light, and researchers initially thought they were artifacts of chthonic worship—rituals associated with the spirits of the underworld. However, the presence of skulls suggested that the true purpose of the rituals was to ” “conversations” with the dead, which allegedly could predict the future. The artifacts were carefully placed in deep crevices inside the cave. The authors of the study write that the bones of people were sometimes used to make contact with them after death, and the flickering flames could be interpreted as their messages from the underground the world “This cave provides important evidence showing both the diversity of religious practices in the Roman period and the stark contrast between the religious use of caves by polytheists in the Roman period and the earliest Christian cave churches in the Holy Land,” said archaeologist Ken Darke of King’s College London. who did not participate in the study. Photo: Boaz Zissu/Theomim Cave Archaeological Project Read also: Archaeologists excavated a cemetery with barrows near Stonehenge
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