Unique Find—A Marble Hoard

March 31, 2010

According to Dr. Edna Stern, excavation director, “We have here a unique find, the likes of which have never been discovered in the Kingdom of Jerusalem in the Crusader period [the capital of which was Akko]…We came upon a cellar that was sealed by collapse, comprised of building stones and charred beams. Beneath the cellar floor, a hoard of about 350 marble items and colored stones was discovered, including two broken marble tombstones with Latin inscriptions, flat marble slabs, marble tiles of various sizes and colors, etc…among them a large stone cross and a large fragment of porphyry [a rare precious purple stone, which has been the color of royalty from Roman times]. The quality of the marble is excellent and it was undoubtedly imported from abroad.”

Stern added, “Everyone knows that Crusader Akko was an important center for international trade, and the marble hoard reflects the magnificent buildings that were erected here…as well as also the commerce and the wealth of its residents…We can assume that the owner of the hoard…was aware of impending danger and, therefore, buried the valuable stones until such time as the tension abated…We can reasonably assume that the collapse that was found above the hoard is evidence of the building’s destruction in 1291 AD, when Crusader Akko was conquered by the Mamluks and was completely devastated.”

From an IAA press release

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