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The Follow-up Committee on Governmental Work in Gaza launched an “archaeological guide” for the sector. The head of the committee, Issam Al-Daalis, announced – in a press conference held at the Al-Basha Palace Museum in Gaza City a few days ago – that the launch of the guide aims to “promote and enhance the investment of societal awareness of the importance, greatness and loftiness of Palestinian civilization.” The guide bears the name “Gaza Hashem, the Levant Gate.”
Al-Dalis added: “The guide carries stories and a people’s love for their land and its sanctities, and the honor of the bond over it.”
He said that the archaeological evidence contains “historical evidence of public life, such as markets, inns, fountains, public baths, asbats (a narrow arched passage between two houses), corners, tombs and ancient tombs.”
Al-Dalis explained that the guide provides a detailed space on the history of archaeological sites, both Islamic and Christian, and documents part of the Ayyubid, Mamluk and Ottoman Islamic civilization, in addition to examples of educational and social lifestyles, through the study of the history of ancient palaces and houses.
He added: “The guide is an archaeological, strategic and knowledge treasure about archaeological monuments and historical urban evidence in the Gaza Strip, and it discloses the secrets of cultural holdings discovered from the reality of excavations and archaeological excavations in the underground and its surface.”
He stated that “the guide will be distributed to the Palestinian citizen, educational institutions, public libraries, and civil society institutions by all means.”
Al-Dalis also announced – during the press conference – the allocation of a sum of money to develop the Pasha Palace Museum in Al-Daraj neighborhood, which dates back to the Mamluk era in the time of Al-Zahir Baybars.
ancient roman cemetery
At the same time, the remains of a 2,000-year-old Roman cemetery were discovered in Gaza, while workers were digging in a huge construction site in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip.
The guard Ahmed saw a strange piece of stone emerging from the ground, which turned out to be the remains of an ancient Roman cemetery. Egyptian bulldozers were digging the sandy soil to construct new concrete buildings as part of contributing to the reconstruction plan, when Ahmed saw strange stones emerging from the ground.
“I alerted the Egyptian foreman, who immediately called the local authorities and asked the workers to stop working,” said the Palestinian, who preferred not to reveal his full name.
It was then that rumors of a potentially important discovery spread on social networks, which prompted the Department of Antiquities in Gaza to contact the French NGO “Premiere Urgence Internationale” and the French Center for the Study of the Bible and Archeology in Jerusalem, to assess the importance of the site and determine the excavation area. .
After arriving in Jabalia, the team led by French archaeologist René Elter discovered a Roman tomb buried centuries ago in the underground of Gaza.
The archaeologist explains to Agence France-Presse that “the first works identified about 40 tombs dating back to the ancient Roman era between the first and second centuries AD.”
He points out that “the cemetery is larger than these forty tombs, and it is expected to contain between 80 and 100 graves,” noting that one of the discovered tombs is decorated with “multi-colored panels representing crowns and wreaths of laurel leaves,” in addition to “urns dedicated to pouring funerary drink.” .
This cemetery was adjacent to the Roman city of Anthedon, the second port of Gaza at the time, on the road leading to what is now the city of Ashkelon, located on the edge of the Palestinian sector.
Archeology issues are highly political topics in the Palestinian territories, and Israel has an arsenal of archaeologists who uncover an impressive number of ancient treasures, while the sector is still largely underdeveloped in Gaza.
“However, there are no differences between what you can find in Gaza and on the other side of the fence,” says Elter. “In Gaza, many sites have disappeared due to the conflict…but the area is a huge archaeological site that requires many teams of experts.”
Fences have been erected around the Roman cemetery, which is constantly watched by guards, while workers continue to build concrete layers in nearby buildings under construction.
“We are trying to combat the smuggling of antiquities inside and outside Gaza,” explains Jamal Abu Reda, director of the local archaeological services that guarantees the protection of the cemetery until January 2023, expressing hope for finding donors to finance the excavations.
In Gaza, residents are more accustomed to burying the dead than digging up graves, as the small enclave has seen several wars and recurring tensions in recent years.
Jihad Abu Hassan, director of the non-governmental organization First Relief International in the Gaza Strip, says that the history of Gaza is full of archaeological treasures that must be protected for future generations.
Abu Hassan explains, “Some avoid informing the authorities about archaeological discoveries at construction sites, for fear of not receiving compensation” in the event of work stoppage, and “as a result, we lose archaeological sites every day.”
“Hence the importance of the heritage defense strategy” to preserve history and train local archaeologists, he adds.
Over the past few years, the NGO Primary Relief International has helped train 84 archaeological technicians, in order to prepare the next generation and create job opportunities, while unemployment exceeds 60% of young people.
Among the rare successes in this field: preserving the Byzantine monastery of St. Hilarion, the largest in the Near East, and extending over an area of two hectares in Tel Umm Amer, south of Gaza.
This site, which has been open to the public for a few years, takes its name from a fourth century hermit monk in Gaza, and includes a hall and baths, as well as 4 superimposed churches.
“We receive about 14,000 visitors annually, including schoolchildren,” said Palestinian archaeologist Fadel al-Atool, 41, who became obsessed with antiquities as a teenager while sitting at the foot of a refugee camp.
He added while touring the site of St. Hilarion’s Monastery that his dream is “to conduct excavations in all archaeological sites in Gaza, and make them accessible to the public, to share Gaza’s history and culture with the world.”
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