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 shallow, round clay bowl with an inscription in a Semitic script written in concentric circles surrounding a central drawing of a human-like figure.

Incantation Bowl for Divorce

This magic bowl from Mesopotamia requests a “divorce” from a demon. The Aramaic text contains multiple magical formulae and calls upon angels to aid the victim. An image of a demon appears in the…

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A detailed scale model of an ancient stone building featuring rectangular walls and small window openings, displayed against a stone backdrop.

The Herodian Quarter

Reconstruction of a Herodian House. © Z. Radovan / Bible Land Pictures.

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An illustrated reconstruction of an ancient temple complex with high stone walls, arched gateways, and several large buildings, set against a hilly landscape with scattered trees.

Wilson’s Arch

Wilson’s Arch Reconstruction. Illustration by Dalit Weinblatt.

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Aerial view of ancient stone ruins with rectangular and circular structures, surrounded by trees and pathways.

The Ḥammat Tiberias Synagogues

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Mosaic with three registers, arranged vertically. In the center register is a depiction of a person with a halo surrounded by the zodiac. In the top register is a Torah shrine flanked by two menorahs, surrounded by ritual objects. In the bottom register is a grid with Greek inscriptions, flanked by lions.

Mosaic Pavement, Ḥammat Tiberias

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Ancient mosaic featuring interlocking circles with animals, trees, a caged bird, grapes, and geometric patterns, bordered by a zigzag design and two lions facing each other, flanking a menorah, at the top.

Synagogue Mosaic, Nirim

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Black-and-white photo of a wooden coffin in an excavated grave site, seen from above, with a measuring stick placed beside it for scale and a sandbag at one end.

Wooden Coffin, ‘En Gedi

Wooden Coffin in situ. Yizhar Hirschfeld and Gideon Hadas, “En-Gedi,” in The New Encyclopedia of Archaeological Excavations in the Holy Land, vol. 1, ed. Ephraim Stern…

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A collection of ancient glass vessels in various shapes and sizes.

Blown Glass Jugs and Juglets

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A broken, round stone with ancient script carved into its rough surface, featuring two visible lines of inscriptions, against a black background.

Kathros Weight

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Two sides of an ancient bronze coin: one shows a four-legged table surrounded by dots, and the other features a seven-branched menorah. Both sides have faint inscriptions. The coin appears worn and weathered.

Coin of Antigonus Mattathias

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A rectangular stone mosaic with multiple lines of Hebrew script in dark tiles, set against a background of lighter-colored tiles. The mosaic appears weathered and is displayed outdoors.

Talmudic Inscription, Rehob

This Hebrew and Aramaic inscription from the mosaic floor of the Rehob synagogue, in the Galilee, is the earliest extant version of a rabbinic halakhic text. It includes elements found in tannaitic…

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Map showing the eastern Mediterranean region in ancient times, with the sites of ancient synagogues labeled. The bottom section enlarges the area around the Sea of Galilee and Dead Sea.

Map of Synagogues in Antiquity

Synagogues in Antiquity. Map by Bill Nelson.

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