Archaeologists Discover Rare African Christian Artifacts in Ancient Israeli Graves

In a discovery hailed as both archaeologically and culturally significant, Israeli researchers have uncovered rare 1,500-year-old artifacts linked to an ancient African Christian community during an excavation in the Negev Desert, as per Fox News.

The Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) announced the findings on May 14, revealing that the excavation took place at Tel Malḥata, an ancient mound in the Arad Valley historically used as a trade crossroads by merchants from Africa, India, and the Arabian Peninsula.

The artifacts were discovered in the graves of women and children and include well-preserved wooden and bone figurines with pronounced African features, as well as glassware, bronze bracelets, and jewelry made from stone and alabaster. The burial sites followed ancient Christian customs, indicating that this community practiced Christianity while maintaining deeply rooted cultural traditions.

“These artifacts, carved from ebony wood and bone, offer a rare glimpse into the identity and personal beliefs of people who lived in this region about 1,500 years ago,” the IAA said in a statement. “The figurines were likely worn as personal items, serving both decorative and symbolic purposes.”

Researchers described the ebony carvings as particularly significant due to the rarity of the material, which originates from southern India and Sri Lanka. The items were carefully placed alongside the deceased, and archaeologists believe they may have represented ancestral figures, preserving traditions that predated or paralleled the adoption of Christianity.

“It is likely that a woman and a child who were buried side-by-side, and in whose graves two of the figurines were discovered, belonged to the same family – and perhaps they were even mother and son,” the study noted.

Eli Escusido, director of the Israel Antiquities Authority, called the discovery “deeply moving.”

“These findings are a powerful reminder that the Land of Israel has always been a crossroads of cultures,” Escusido said. “People arrived here from distant lands, integrated into local society, yet retained parts of their cultural identity and passed it down through generations.”

The IAA emphasized that African figurines in Christian graves are extremely rare in Israel, and that the discovery significantly enriches the understanding of cultural diversity in the region during the Byzantine period.

The Tel Malḥata excavation is one of several significant archaeological achievements in Israel this past year. Recent discoveries also include the oldest-known Chinese inscription found at Mount Zion and a 3,800-year-old Canaanite amulet uncovered by a child at Tel Azeka in the Judean Foothills.