Loot of Roman weapons has been found as sharp as the day it was hidden

Israeli researchers made a rare discovery while searching a cave in the Dead Sea: five weapons the Romans The perfectly preserved stones are believed to have been used in battles 1,900 years ago.

Maybe it was swords hidden “spoils”. Eitan Klein, one of the directors of the Judean Desert Research Project who worked on the excavations, said rebels from an opposition faction would be in danger if they were caught carrying Roman weapons. in the current situation.

On Wednesday, the Israel Antiquities Authority Announce the discovery He hides in a small, almost inaccessible cave in the Judean Desert near the Dead Sea. In a video detailing the expedition, the researchers said they removed swords from a narrow crevice in the cave.

“We are talking about a very rare find, never found in Israel,” said Dr. Ethan Klein, a researcher with the Israel Antiquities Authority’s Judean Desert Survey.

Scientists said that swords They had wooden and leather handles, wooden scabbards, and steel blades that were amazingly preserved after spending nearly 2,000 years in a remote cave in the desert.

Eli Escocedo, director of the Israel Antiquities Authority, said the swords She was very sharp “As if it was hidden today,” the BBC reported.

Archaeologists have also found a Roman pilumheavy arrow.

The archaeologists said that swords were weapons commonly used by Roman soldiers stationed in Judea.

Researchers have discovered ancient swords from the Roman era in a small crevice in a remote cave near the Dead Sea. (Emil Al-Ajam / Israel Antiquities Authority)

“The concealment of swords and pilums in deep crevices in the isolated cave north of Ein Gedi indicates that the weapons were taken as loot from Roman soldiers or from the battlefield, and were deliberately hidden by Jewish rebels for reuse,” Klein said.

It’s possible the weapons were hidden around the time of the Bar Kokhba revolt from 132 to 135 BC, Klein said, but added that he and the researchers are doing more work to determine who owned the weapons, where they were forged and in what historical events they could be. has been used.

Posted in Business interested
Adapted from Science alert