13-year-old Yair Whiteson was hiking with his father on Mount Carmel in Israel when he discovered a bronze ring that’s likely 1,800 years old. The ancient ring has an engraving of a goddess of war from Roman mythology. It also dates back to that period.
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The Whitesons were out for some quality time in the forests surrounding Mount Carmel when the younger Whiteson noticed a “small green object and picked it up.” Whiteson told the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) that he is interested in fossils and stones and likes to collect them.
This time, however, he’d discovered something profound. Upon inspection, Whiteson realized it was a corroded ring with some sort of picture on it. He initially thought it was a warrior—and he wasn’t wrong. Experts say the goddess appears naked with a helmet on her head, carrying a shield in one hand and a spear in the other.
“The small ring [was] at the foot of the antique site of Shalala Ruin, located on a hill where the remains of a Roman period mansion and next to an ancient rock quarry,” IAA says in a Facebook post. “At the end of the quarry there are two grave holes. It is possible, then, that the ring belonged to a woman who lives in the same mansion. Another option is that she belonged to a quarry worker, or maybe was used as a burial offering in nearby graves.”
See the ring here:
A Future Archaeologist?
Eli Escuzido, director of the IAA, said: “Yair’s appreciative act, who immediately reported the discovery and handed the ring to the state’s treasures, demonstrates responsibility and respect for our past.”
Escuzido adds: “Yair told us that he wants to be an archaeologist in the future, and we keep a place of respect for him here.”
What an incredible find!
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Excellent photo…. not!