Israeli toddler finds a 3,800-year-old amulet
During a family trip to Tel Azekah near Beit Shemesh, three-and-a-half-year-old Ziv Nitzan from Moshav Ramot Meir stumbled upon an extraordinary piece of history — an ancient scarab amulet dating back approximately 3,800 years.
The young girl’s discovery was purely accidental, according to her sister, Omer Nitzan.
“We were walking along the path when Ziv bent down and picked up a particular stone,” she said, according to a press release published by the Israel Antiquities Authority. “After rubbing off the sand, we saw something was different about it. We called our parents and realized we had found an archaeological artifact.”
Judah Region District Archaeologist Semyon Gendler commended the family for their prompt reporting and awarded Ziv a certificate of appreciation for her good citizenship. The amulet will now be displayed in a special Passover exhibition at the Jay and Jeanie Schottenstein National Campus for the Archaeology of Israel, alongside other rare artifacts from the periods of Egypt and Canaan, many of which are being displayed publicly for the first time.
Daphna Ben-Tor, an expert in ancient amulets and seals, identified the object as a Canaanite scarab from the Middle Bronze Age.
“Scarabs were used during this period as seals and amulets, often found in graves, public buildings, and homes,” she said, according to the release. “Many feature symbols and messages reflecting religious beliefs or social status,” she explained.
Scarabs are artifacts originating in ancient Egypt, shaped like a dung beetle. The beetle held religious significance in ancient Egypt as a symbol of creation and renewal, believed to represent the incarnation of the Creator G-d.
Israeli Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu emphasized the historical significance of Ziv’s discovery: “This seal connects us to the grand civilizations that lived on this land thousands of years ago. It is a reminder that even children can play a role in uncovering history.”
