The Judean Desert, and especially its numerous caves, has yielded several of the most important and exciting discoveries made in the Near East. Over the course of history, this desert has served a place of habitation and refuge. In times of crisis and hardships, people fled to its caves, in hiding or seeking solitude, often concealing their valuables and treasures. The arid climate enabled the preservation of organic materials, making the region a trove of otherwise perishable objects.
This exhibition includes the finds from a fourth-millennium BCE burial cave of a warrior, discovered in Wadi el-Makkukh. The cave is in fact a small fissure in a cliff, explored in the winter of 1993. Three archaeological levels were distinguished. From the lower level came the fragmentary remains of a fifth-millennium BCE burial. The major finds are from the middle level, which was dated to the early fourth millennium BCE (the Late Chalcolithic period). They comprise the grave goods of a so-called warrior, thus termed on account of the weapons associated with the burial.
The skeleton, in a contracted position, was found wrapped in shrouds. The accompanying objects were mostly of perishable materials, and may have been for personal use. The finds include a large plaited reed mat, forming the padding for the burial, three textiles, a coiled basket-bowl, a wooden bowl, a bow and arrows, a stick, a pair of leather sandals, and a large flint knife. All of the objects were heavily stained with red ocher – most likely symbolizing blood (life) and regeneration – probably during the mortuary rites. The high quality and technical expertise displayed by the objects suggest that the deceased was a high-ranking individual.
For more information, please contact
Mrs Helena Sokolov
, Coordinator of Special Projects - National Treasures