‘Learn your lesson’: Inscribed 2,100-year-old sling bullet found in the Galilee |
A circa 2,100-year-old sling bullet inscribed with the word “Learn” in Greek has been unearthed during archaeological excavations at the Sussita (Hippos) National Park on the eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee, the University of Haifa announced Sunday.
The bullet, measuring 3.2 x 1.95 centimeters and weighing 38 grams, was possibly used by the Greek defenders of the city against the Hasmonean army of King Alexander Jannaeus in 101 BCE.
A paper on the artifact was published in the peer-reviewed journal “Palestine Exploration Quarterly” last week.
Its discovery marks the first time that this specific inscription has been found on a sling bullet, according to Haifa University’s Michael Eisenberg, co-director of excavation at the site and one of the authors of the study.
“Sling bullets were made of lead, and were the most common munitions in the Hellenistic world,” Eisenberg told The Times of Israel over the telephone. “They were the cheapest ones, simple and very effective.”
He explained that most bullets were unadorned. Still, it was not uncommon for bullets to carry decorations, such as a symbol of power or an inscription.
“In the larger Israel-Syria region, many times you will see a group of thunderbolts tied up together as the ultimate weapon of Zeus, the head of the Greek pantheon, sometimes a trident, the weapon of [god of the Sea] Poseidon,” Eisenberg said. “There are very rare cases when the bullets carry an inscription.”
Inscriptions often included........