Ancient Canaanite Seal Discovered by Young Girl During Family Hike
During a family hike at Tel Azekah, near Beit Shemesh, Israel, three-and-a-half-year-old Ziv Nitzan made an extraordinary discovery—a rare Canaanite scarab seal dating back approximately 3,800 years. The ancient artifact, which originates from the Middle Bronze Age, will be showcased to the public during a special Passover exhibition at the National Campus for the Archaeology of Israel in Jerusalem. The seal from Tel Azka. Photo by Emil Aljem, Israel Antiquities Authority A Fortuitous Find Earlier in March, Ziv Nitzan, from Moshav Ramot Meir, was walking along the trails of Tel Azekah with her family when she bent down and picked up what appeared to be an ordinary stone. Her older sister, Omer Nitzan, recounted the moment: “We were walking along the path when Ziv suddenly bent down and, out of all the stones around her, chose this one. She rubbed off the dirt and noticed it looked different. I called my parents to take a look, and we quickly realized we had found something significant....
