Foxes Among the Beautiful Mosaic Floors in 1500 Byzantine Church

Being excavated in Horbat Midras, Israel.  The photographs aren't the best but the fine condition of the mosaic floor is astounding!

Story at pasthorizons.com
Salvage excavations in Israel uncover an impressive mosaic floor
Wednesday, February 2, 2011



Fox - center animal facing to the left (tail to the right), lower left.

 [Excerpted] Part of a 1,500-year-old Byzantine church, the mosaic floor was decorated with images of lions, foxes, fish and peacocks.

The excavation, conducted on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority was necessary due to the site being the target of robbers, trying to access its underground tunnels.

The ruins are built on top of another structure which is believed to have been in use in Roman times. Its underground tunnels were thought to have been used by Jewish rebels around the 2nd century AD. Horbat Midras is believed to be the site of a large Jewish settlement that dates from the Second Temple period until its destruction during the Bar Kokhba uprising in 135 CE.

The later basilica comprises a large flagstone courtyard from which worshippers passed into a corridor. Entering into the nave there were eight breathtaking marble columns that bore magnificent capitals which were imported from Turkey.

For the past month the Israel Antiquities Authority has been engaged in exposing the magnificent structure, unravelling its secrets and preserving the mosaic floors.


I would be very interested to read the possible interpretation of fox images being present inside what I assume is an Orthodox Christian church!

Byzantine Era Church Discovered in Jerusalem Hills

(Photo: Daniel Ein Mor / Antiquities Authority)

Story from Haaretz.com Last update - 17:56 11/03/2009 Archaeologists discover Byzantine-era church in Jerusalem hills By Haaretz Service A church that dates back to the Byzantine period was recently unearthed during construction work at Nes Harim in the Jerusalem hills. The church is [was - see below] paved with mosaics and decorated with an inscription. It was exposed in an archaeological excavation by the Israel Antiquities Authority, after local residents reported unearthing a site that was covered in pine trees and agricultural terraces. In November, during the first excavation in the site, archaeologists exposed the church's narthex - the broad entrance at the front of the church's nave. It was filled with a carpet of polychrome mosaics that was adorned with geometric patterns of intertwined rhomboids separated by flower bud motifs. Unfortunately, at the conclusion of that excavation, the mosaic was defaced and almost completely destroyed by unknown vandals. During that same excavation a complex wine press was partly exposed that consists of at least two upper treading floors and elongated, well-plastered arched cells below them that were probably meant to facilitate the preliminary fermentation of the must. According to archaeologist Daniel Ein Mor, "We know of other Byzantine churches and sites that are believed to be Byzantine monasteries, which are located in the surrounding region. The excavation at Nes Harim supplements our knowledge about the nature of the Christian-Byzantine settlement in the rural areas between the main cities in this part of the country during the Byzantine period, among them Bet Guvrin, Emmaus and Jerusalem."

Byzantine Mosaics of the Amazon Queens

From Today's Zaman: Amazonian queen excavations reveal ancient palace in Şanlıurfa Excavation work in southeastern Şanlıurfa province has led to the discovery of a Roman palace (A.D. fifth to sixth century) and floor mosaics. The Anatolia news agency reported on Sunday that the Haleplibahçe district, one of the oldest historical residential areas of the city, constitutes an important part of the ancient city of Edessa, famous for its wall pictures depicting the Amazonian queens Hippolyte, Antiope, Melanippe and Penthesileia hunting in the forest. The Ministry of Culture and Tourism began the excavation work two years ago after these wall pictures were found. Archeologists have analyzed the mosaic of goddess Kticic, the founder and guardian goddess, found during the course of this year's excavations, which lasted for four months. She stands in the foreground, holding the scales of justice in her hand. The background includes a black man and a zebra. The archeologists explained that the figure of the black man and the zebra in mosaics are characteristic of Palestine and that this was the first time they had been encountered in Turkey. The work also partly revealed a mosaic that depicts a scene in which Chiron, the trainer of Achilles -- the famous Greek mythological warrior -- is learning how to fight. Excavation work in the region still continues and, following its completion, the area will be turned into an archeology park. Mehmet Önal, one of the archeologists working on the Haleplibahçe excavations, said the mosaics they found were very similar to those found in Antakya and Byzantine mosaics in İstanbul. Önal noted that they have revealed western, northern and eastern walls of the ancient building this year, adding that there were also fountains and shallow pools around the walls of the palace. Önal stated that the palace had a 34-meter-long baronial hall with a floor covered with mosaics, adding that the palace was similar to villas that were found in the ancient city of Zeugma in Gaziantep province. However, none of the villas in Zeugma had a hall of this size. "The tesserae used for the mosaics of this palace are very small, which shows that the workmanship of the mosaics was very good. This shows that the palace belonged to an important administrator of the Eastern Roman Empire," Önal said, adding: "There is an unbelievable color harmony in the mosaics with their rich anatomical figures. No other mosaic has ever had the influential image of the horse that Amazonian Penthesilea rides." 14 October 2008, Tues Tuesday TODAY'S ZAMAN WITH WIRES İSTANBUL