Sample Sources

The sources below are those contained in our three curated collections—covering themes of Passover, Gender Roles, and Holocaust Resistance. They represent a fraction of the thousands of sources that will be available when the full site launches in 2024.

A black-and-white line drawing of a fragmented ancient inscription in a Semitic script. Sections of the broken inscription contain outlined areas with legible characters. The lines are numbered 1 to 9 on the right of the drawing, and there is a centimeter scale at the bottom.

Palestinian Potsherd Incantation (Drawing)

This potsherd was found at Ḥorvat Rimmon, in southern Judea. Written on the sherd is a love spell consisting of eight lines of Aramaic text and one line of magical characters. The incantation calls…

View Source

A stone structure with steps leading down into a rectangular pool of water, surrounded by weathered stone walls and blocks.

Magdala Residential Quarter

View Source

A rectangular ancient stone tablet with worn Greek inscriptions carved into its surface, displayed upright in a museum setting. The text is faded and partially eroded, making some letters difficult to read.

Temple Warning Inscription

View Source

Ancient stone ruins with a large rectangular archway and several standing columns, surrounded by trees and greenery under a clear sky.

Katzrin Synagogue Entrance

View Source

Ancient mosaic depicting the twelve zodiac signs arranged in a circle, each sign illustrated with a symbolic figure or animal, surrounded by detailed decorative borders. In the center of the circle is a person with a halo holding an orb.

Zodiac Mosaic, Ḥammat Tiberias

View Source

Mosaic panel with zodaic in the center, figures on the bottom, and ritual objects and animals on the top, surrounded by stone and several square blocks.

Mosaic Floor, Beth Alpha

Photo by Dr. Brad Erickson.

View Source

Ancient stone ruins at an archaeological site on a hillside, with scattered blocks and partial walls. Rolling hills and a distant settlement are visible in the background under a hazy sky.

Herod’s Mausoleum, Herodium

Mausoleum Podium. The Herodium Expedition, The Institute of Archaeology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Photo: G. Laron.

View Source

Wooden Bowls

Collection of the Israel Antiquities Authority, photo © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, by John Williams.

View Source

A rectangular, weathered metal object with a central flower-like geometric pattern inside a circle, surrounded by worn Hebrew inscriptions, with a hole at the top for hanging.

Lead Weight

Photo courtesy Israel Museum, Jerusalem.

View Source

Two sides of an ancient coin: one side features a double cornucopia, and the other features a galley. Both sides have Greek inscriptions and dotted borders.

Coin of Herod Archelaus

View Source

Map showing the Western Roman Empire in green and the Eastern Roman Empire in orange around 400 CE, with major cities, seas, and regions labeled, spanning parts of Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East.

Map of Roman Empire and Jewish Diasporas, ca. 400 CE

Roman Empire and Jewish Diasporas, ca. 400 CE. Map by Bill Nelson.

View Source

Aerial view of an ancient stone amphitheater surrounded by green fields, scattered trees, and ruins of other structures in a rural landscape.

Samaria-Sebaste

Herod rebuilt the city of Samaria, renaming it Sebaste in honor of Augustus (called Sebaste in Greek). He built a half-mile (approximately 0.8 km) cardo, or main road, going into the city. The road…

View Source