Anim synagogue

Ancient synagogue ('Anim)
Shown within Israel
Location Israel Israel
Coordinates 31°20′33″N 35°03′42″E / 31.3425°N 35.061667°E / 31.3425; 35.061667
Length 14.5 m (48 ft)
Width 8.5 m (28 ft)
History
Material hewn stone
Founded 4th-century CE
Abandoned 8th-century CE
Periods Roman-Byzantine
Site notes
Excavation dates 1988–89
Archaeologists Z. Ilan & Dan Urman
Condition ruin

The Anim Synagogue, located 20 km (12 mi) northwest of Arad in the Yatir Forest, Israel, was an ancient Synagogue in use during the 4th–7th centuries CE. The site is recognized as a National Heritage Site of Israel.

History

The synagogue is located at an ancient site identified with the 'Anim mentioned in the Bible (Joshua 15:50). It is also believed to be the site of the large Jewish village of Anaya during the Roman-Byzantine period.[1]

The synagogue was discovered during an excavation conducted in 1987. It consists of a rectangular prayer hall orientated towards Jerusalem measuring 14.5 by 8.5 metres (48 ft × 28 ft), an entrance portico and a courtyard with rooms on both sides.[1] Hewn stone walls still stand to a height of 3.5 m (11 ft) and two entrances on the east side survive with their lintels intact. Evidence of a mosaic floor was found beneath the current stone slab flooring[1] and fragments of an inscription remain.[2] The building functioned as a synagogue until the seventh or eighth century when it was turned into a mosque.[2]

Excavations have uncovered the remains of a Byzantine era overlooking the site from the east, joined to the former village of Upper Horvat Anim by a pathway. [3]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Dan Urman; Paul Virgil McCracken Flesher (1998). Ancient synagogues: historical analysis and archaeological discovery. BRILL. pp. 135–136. ISBN 978-90-04-11254-4. Retrieved 2 October 2010.
  2. 1 2 Günter Stemberger (2000). Jews and Christians in the Holy Land: Palestine in the fourth century. Continuum International Publishing Group. pp. 150–151. ISBN 978-0-567-08699-0. Retrieved 2 October 2010.
  3. ↑ Doron Bar, 'The Christianisation of Rural Palestine during_Late Antiquity,' Journal of Ecclesiastical History, Vol. 54, No. 3 July 2003 pp.401-421 p.413.
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