This archeological discovery changed how we view the Roman Empire

Meet the Dead Sea Swords
Four of the most well-preserved Roman swords have been unearthed
Excellently well-preserved
Hidden as plunder
Hidden swords
The Judean Desert Survey Project
Hiding the weapons
An elusive historical event
Figuring out what happened
The Bar Kokhba Revolt
An impressive find
“It’s a dream”
No exact date
A Roman pilum
Each sword tells its own story
The grander narrative
An exciting discovery
A unique time capsule
The Dead Sea Swords are astonishing
Ranked as the Number 1 find by National Geographic in 2023
Meet the Dead Sea Swords

Archeologists made a stunning discovery in 2023 and what was uncovered changed how some researchers view the Roman Empire. What was found? Let's look at the artifacts that were unearthed and how they changed history.

Four of the most well-preserved Roman swords have been unearthed

Archeologists in Israel unearthed four ancient swords while excavating a cave near the Dead Sea, and even more remarkable than the find was what it could tell us about ancient history.

Excellently well-preserved

The four well-preserved swords were discovered in the crevice of a cave somewhere in the En Gedi Nature Reserve and still had their original wooden and leather hilts intact. 

Hidden as plunder

A statement from the Israel Antiquities Authority noted that the swords appear to have been hidden by Judean rebels after they were taken from the Roman army as plunder. 

Photo Credit: Israel Antiquities Authority / Facebook @AntiquitiesEN

 

Hidden swords

“The hiding of the swords and the pilum in deep cracks in the isolated cave north of ‘En Gedi, hints that the weapons were taken as booty,” explained Dr. Eitan Klein. 

 

The Judean Desert Survey Project

Dr. Klein is the Director of the Judean Desert Survey Project and he went on to note the swords were likely hidden by Judean rebels so that they could be reused at a later time. 

Photo Credit: Israel Antiquities Authority / Facebook @AntiquitiesEN

Hiding the weapons

Judean rebels obviously wouldn’t have wanted to be caught carrying such incriminating weapons around according to Dr. Klein, which is why he believed they were so well hidden. 

An elusive historical event

However, the exact historical event to which the weapons can be linked eluded Klein and his fellow researchers at the time, though committed themselves to figuring out how they got there. 

Photo Credit: Israel Antiquities Authority / Facebook @AntiquitiesEN

Figuring out what happened

“We will try to pinpoint the historical event that led to the caching of these weapons in the cave and determine whether it was at the time of the Bar Kokhba Revolt,” Dr. Klein said. 

The Bar Kokhba Revolt

The Smithsonian noted that the Bar Kokhba Revolt took place between 132 and 135 CE and was ultimately unsuccessful and led to heavy Jewish losses and more persecution. 

Photo Credit: Israel Antiquities Authority / Facebook @AntiquitiesEN

An impressive find

The swords themselves are impressive finds, and three of them have been identified as Roman spatha swords while the final sword was thought to be a Roman pommel sword. 

“It’s a dream”

“Finding a single sword is rare—so four? It’s a dream! We rubbed our eyes to believe it,” the archeologists told the Israel Antiquities Authority about their discovery at ‘En Gedi. 

Photo Credit: Israel Antiquities Authority / Facebook @AntiquitiesEN

No exact date

The researchers hadn't attached an exact date to the period the swords were from the Associated Press reported at the time, but they did mention their current estimates were based on their typography.  

A Roman pilum

A Roman military javelin known as a pilum was also found with the four swords but has not made nearly as big of a splash as the four swords due to the history they can reveal. 

Each sword tells its own story

“Each one of them can tell you an entire story,” Guy Stiebel, an archeologist at Tel Aviv University, explained to the Associated Press about the discovery of the four swords. 

Photo Credit: Israel Antiquities Authority / Facebook @AntiquitiesEN

The grander narrative

Stiebel explained that the swords reflected a much “grander narrative” of the Roman Empire since they were found in such a remote cave and were most likely produced elsewhere. 

An exciting discovery

“This is a dramatic and exciting discovery, touching on a specific moment in time,” noted the Israel Antiquities Authority’s director Eli Escusido in a statement according to the Armstrong Institute of Archeology.

Photo Credit: Israel Antiquities Authority / Facebook @AntiquitiesEN

A unique time capsule

“This is a unique time capsule, whereby fragments of scrolls, coins from the Jewish Revolt, leather sandals, and now even swords in their scabbards, sharp as if they had only just been hidden away today,” Escusido added.

Photo Credit: Israel Antiquities Authority / Facebook @AntiquitiesEN

The Dead Sea Swords are astonishing

A lot of amazing artifacts were unearthed by archeologists in 2023 but one of the most promising and unexpected discoveries also turned out to be one of the year's best according to a ranking from National Geographic.

Ranked as the Number 1 find by National Geographic in 2023

In its yearly ranking of the world's top archeological discoveries, National Geographic opted to rank the stunning uncovering of four ancient swords in Israel as the number one finds on its 2023 list. Here's what we know about this archeological discovery.

Photo Credit: Israel Antiquities Authority / Facebook @AntiquitiesEN

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