Two IDF reservists recently discovered a 1,500-year-old, well-preserved pottery oil lamp from the Byzantine period in the mud of a Gaza staging area. They handed it over to the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA), which awarded them with a certificate for good citizenship.Reservists Natanel Melchior and Alon Segev from the 404th battalion of the 282nd Artillery Brigade were wandering in the field when they came upon a piece of pottery stuck upside down whose round shape attracted them. “It was covered in mud,” Melchior recalled. “I cleaned it, and after I realized that it might be something special, I called the Antiquities Authority.”At the same time, Segev uploaded a photo of the lamp to Facebook, which aroused much interest. “The post gained momentum, and it received dozens of comments and hundreds of likes. People suggested various possibilities about what the artifact was used for, and many advised us to call the Antiquities Authority.”
What is a "sandal candle"?
According to Sara Tal, the IAA’s archaeologist in the Western Negev region, it is a pottery lamp from the Byzantine period known as a ‘sandal lamp.’ It was commonly used for light and made in a pattern typical of the lowland region and southern Israel near the Gaza Strip. Tal went to the soldiers, collected the lamp, and presented them with the certificate.
