A small stone weight used during the First Temple period of Ancient Israeli history and mentioned in the Old Testament has been discovered in modern Jerusalem.
Known as a “beka,” the small stone weights are a rare find for archaeologists, with this recent discovery being located by a volunteer at a dig near the Western Wall. The beka is mentioned in the Bible.
Eli Shukron, an archaeologist working on behalf of the Israeli Antiquities Authority, said in a recent statement that the beka stone was unique in that its inscription goes left to right, rather than the usual right to left.
“Apparently, the seal craftsman got confused when he engraved the inscription on the weight and mistakenly used mirror script as he was used to doing,” stated Shukron, as reported by the Times of Israel last week.
“From this mistake we can learn about the general rule: the artists who engraved weights during the First Temple period were the same artists who specialized in creating seals.”
The beka is mentioned in the Bible, including in Exodus 38:26, “one beka per person, that is, half a shekel, according to the sanctuary shekel, from everyone who had crossed over to those counted, twenty years old or more, a total of 603,550 men.”
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SOURCE: Christian Post, Michael Gryboski
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