Incredible Treasure Find in Northern Israel's Galilee Region Dating Back to the Time of Alexander the Great

""Hidden treasure found by amateur explorers in a cave is being described as one of the most important discoveries in northern Israel in recent years. Members of the Israeli Caving Club have uncovered a rare cache of silver coins and jewelry dating to the reign of Alexander the Great. The explorers spotted the ancient finds tucked into a narrow crevice of a stalactite cave in the Galilee region of northern Israel. The glint of a shiny, silver object caught the attention of Hen Zakai and his spelunking partners. According to The Jerusalem Post the men found two ancient silver coins, minted in the late fourth century B.C. The remains of a pouch cloth contained jewelry – rings, earrings and bracelets. The items were well preserved and intricately detailed. CNN reports, “On one side of the coin is an image of Alexander the Great, while on the other side is an image of Zeus sitting on his throne, arm raised as if ready to wield his fearsome lightning bolts. The coins allowed archaeologists to date the find.” Alexander the Great, ruler of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia, led a military campaign throughout the Middle East and parts of Asia. He is credited with founding some 20 cities that bore his name, including Alexandria in ancient Egypt, and spread Greece's culture east. He died in Babylon, the present day Iraq, in 323 B.C.""

""Realizing they’d found historically significant items, the cave explorers immediately contacted Israel Antiquities Authority officials (IAA), and a joint investigation of the cave was held. Remnants of pottery were discovered, but some of the ancient vessels have fused with the limestone stalactites of the cave, and cannot be removed. Mail Online adds that agate gemstones and an oil lamp were also found. “After analyzing the findings in IAA’s laboratory, archeologists determined that some of the artifacts date back to the Chalcolithic period 6,000 years ago, Early Bronze Age 5,000 years ago, Biblical period 3,000 years ago, and the Hellenistic period, approximately 2,300 years ago,” writes The Jerusalem Post. This find comes after the discovery of a massive hoard of almost 2,000 gold coins by divers in the ancient harbor in Caesarea, Israel. These coins, which are over 1,000 years old, constitute the largest find of its kind in the country. It is believed the treasure belongs to a shipwreck of an official treasury boat on its way to Egypt with collected taxes.""

Counting Coins:

http://www.ancient-origins.net/news-history-archaeology/explorers-find-hidden-treasure-cave-coins-and-jewelry-020251

Ancient Archaeological Excavation Find Unveils Tomb in Luxor Dating 3000 Years During Kingdom's 18th Dynasty

""Egypt's antiquities ministry announced on Tuesday the discovery of the tomb of Amenhotep, guard of the temple of Egyptian diety Anun, in the city of Luxor. The tomb, believed to be 3,000 years old, would date to the New Kingdom's 18th dynasty.

The tomb was found about 700 kilometers south of Cairo in the city of Luxor by a team of American archaeologists with the American Research Center, along with an Egyptian inspectors team. The Minister of Antiquities, Mamdouh el-Damaty said in a statement, "The tomb contains many stunning scenes with bright colours painted on plaster."

Photographs distributed by the ministry show a T-shaped tomb with bright green and brown paintings with hieroglyphics. The scenes depict the tomb owner and his wife in front of an offering table, as well as paintings showing everyday life, such as hunting.

But sadly, the tomb of the temple guard was found to have been vandalized for unknown reasons. The tomb "was deliberately damaged in ancient times," said Sultan Eid, the ministry's general director for the Upper Egypt region.

Eid added, "The name and titles of the tomb owner, some hieroglyphic texts and scenes in addition to the names of the god Amun were deliberately erased." The scratching out of the name of the god, Amun probably occurred during the religious revolution under the rule of the Pharaoh Akhenaton, said Eid.

Luxor was the capital of the New Kingdom

Luxor was the ancient city of Thebes and the "glorious city" of the god Amon-Ra during the New Kingdom's 18th dynasty. Thebes grew in importance as a center for arts, religion and political influence as early as the 11th dynasty, dating to 2100 BC. Later, pharaohs of the New Kingdom further added to the wealth and influence of Thebes when they led expeditions to Canaan, and Kush, now northern Sudan.""

Antiquities Ministry Announcment

http://www.digitaljournal.com/science/archaeologists-find-3-000-year-old-tomb-in-luxor/article/427489