Sometimes, all it takes to make a world-shaking discovery is a pair of curious eyes—and a little bit of sand.
That’s exactly what happened last month when 3-year-old Ziv Nitzan was out on a family walk and stumbled across a piece of biblical history. “We were walking along the path, and then Ziv bent down – and out of all the stones around her, she picked up this particular stone,” said her sister, Omer Nitzan. “When she rubbed it and removed the sand from it, we saw something was different about it.”
As reported by Fox News, the discovery turned out to be a 3,800-year-old scarab amulet from the Middle Bronze Age—right near the ancient town of Azekah in the Judaean Foothills, a place mentioned in 1 Samuel 17:1 where David faced Goliath. The artifact was immediately turned over to the Israel Antiquities Authority, which confirmed the find and awarded young Ziv a certificate of appreciation.
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The scarab is shaped like a dung beetle, a sacred symbol in ancient Egyptian culture. According to the IAA, “It was a symbol of new life, because of the dung ball it created and then laid its eggs into it, from which new life would hatch.” The Egyptian word for scarab even comes from the verb meaning “to come into being” or “to be created.” These amulets were used as seals or symbols of religious belief and status, as explained by Dr. Daphna Ben-Tor.
/**/Tel Aviv University professor Oded Lipschits, who has led excavations at Tel Azekah for 15 years, called the city “one of the most important cities in the Judean Lowlands” during the Bronze Ages. He added, “The scarab found by Ziv joins a long list of Egyptian and Canaanite finds discovered here, which attest to the close ties and cultural influences between Canaan and Egypt during that period.”
In honor of Passover, IAA Director Eli Escuido announced the artifact will be displayed at the Jay and Jeanie Schottenstein National Campus for the Archaeology of Israel, where the public can view it alongside other significant Egyptian and Canaanite items. “Thanks to her, everyone will be able to see it and enjoy it,” he said.
It’s incredible, every time archaeologists search the soil, they uncover more evidence that affirms the truth of the Bible. History and archaeology continue to echo the pages of Scripture, reminding us that the stories passed down for generations are far more than myth—they’re the very foundation of truth.
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James Lasher is staff writer for Charisma Media.
