A rare stone seal from the First Temple period has been unearthed in Jerusalem, the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) announced. This 2,700-year-old artifact, which bears ancient Hebrew script and an image of a winged "genie," was discovered during ongoing excavations in the Davidson Archaeological Garden, located just south of the Temple Mount in Jerusalem's Old City.
The small, black stone seal is engraved with the inscription "LeYehoʼezer ben Hoshʼayahu" — "For Yeho’ezer son of Hosh’ayahu" — in paleo-Hebrew script. Experts believe that the seal belonged to a high-ranking official in the Kingdom of Judah, who likely used it to authenticate documents or certificates.
Dr. Yuval Baruch and Navot Rom, directors of the excavation, described the seal as “one of the most beautiful ever discovered in ancient Jerusalem, executed at the highest artistic level.” The seal's depiction of a winged "genie" is especially significant, as this is the first time such an image has been found in Israeli or regional archaeology.
According to Dr. Filip Vukosavović, an Assyriologist and IAA archaeologist, winged figures like this were commonly depicted in Neo-Assyrian art from the 9th to 7th centuries BCE. They were believed to be protective demons, underscoring the seal's unique and potentially magical significance.
