Heather Clark – July 15, 2020
JERUSALEM — An excavation in Jerusalem Walls National Park that yielded a rare stamp and seal impression dating back to the Persian era is stated to provide evidence for the restoration of Jerusalem during the times of Ezra and Nehemiah, as chronicled in the Scriptures.
“The finding of the stamp and seal impression in the City of David indicates that despite the city’s dire situation after the destruction, efforts were made to restore the administrative authorities to normal, and its residents continued to use the structures that were destroyed partly,” stated Prof. Yuval Gadot of the Department of Archaeology and Ancient Near Eastern Cultures at Tel Aviv University, and Dr. Yiftah Shalev, of the Israel Antiquities Authority.
The Antiquities Authority recently announced the discovery, which was uncovered in the Givati parking lot area of the National Park next to rubble from a structure razed during the Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem.
Gadot and Shalev state that it is rare to find artifacts from the Persian Period, and few of this type have been found in Israel.
The impression was found on what is known as a bulla, a clay seal used by administrative authorities to sign documents and to keep them sealed until they reach their destination. They were also sometimes used as seals on storage jugs for food received as a tax.