The Bureij mosaic is a

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman E ...

-era mosaic floor discovered under an olive orchard in the

Bureij Bureij () is a Palestinian refugee camp located in the central Gaza Strip east of the Salah al-Din Road in the Deir al-Balah Governorate. The camp's total land area is 529 dunam, dunums and in 2017, it had a population of 28,024 with 28,770 regi ...

refugee camp in the

Gaza Strip The Gaza Strip, also known simply as Gaza, is a small territory located on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea; it is the smaller of the two Palestinian territories, the other being the West Bank, that make up the State of Palestine. I ...

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

in 2022. It was part of a Byzantine church, and the mosaic was likely created between AD 390 and 634–636. It is described as a "sprawling grid" with

cartouches file:Birth and Throne cartouches of pharaoh Seti I, from KV17 at the Valley of the Kings, Egypt. Neues Museum.jpg, upalt=A stone face carved with coloured hieroglyphics. Two cartouches - ovoid shapes with hieroglyphics inside - are visible at the ...

containing 17 animals, including geese, ducks, dogs, insects, goats, deer, and an octopus. There are also geometric patterns and a border depicting a vine. The mosaic underlies a area from which three sections of earth have already been removed, with more remaining to be excavated. Farmer Salman al-Nabahin found the mosaic when he began investigating why his trees were not rooting properly. The French Biblical and Archaeological School of Jerusalem is assisting with the excavation. Archaeologist Rene Elter reported that the mosaic was in a "perfect state of conservation". Further research is needed to determine whether the mosaic floor was installed in a private villa, a religious structure, or for some other purpose. The archaeological site is inaccessible due to the Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip, and researchers are dependent on satellite imagery to monitor changes. A report compiling information collected between June and September 2024 noted that the site had been bulldozed and it is likely that such activity has damaged archaeological deposits close to the surface.

References

{{Wikidatacoord, Q123200226, type:landmark_region:PS-GZA, display=title Byzantine mosaics Holy Land during Byzantine rule 2022 archaeological discoveries Archaeological sites in the Gaza Strip Deir al-Balah Governorate

See also

References