As the Israel Antiquities Authority reported on Sunday, a mysterious dolmen more than 4,000 years old and decorated with carvings has been discovered in Galilee, northern Israel. The size of the structure and the engravings make it so special.
Discovered near the kibbutz (collectivist village) Shamir in the Upper Galilee, this dolmen is unique because of its monumental dimensions and the artistic decorations located on its ceiling according to the details of the press release from the Antiquities Authority.
Dolmens are constructions intended to shelter the dead. They consist of a stone slab resting on pillars also made of stone. » This is the first proven artistic presence in a dolmen in the Middle East. says archaeologist Uri Berger. Professor Gonen Sharon, another Tel Hai College archaeologist associated with the excavations, clarified that it was a tomb » where human bones were found « . On the dolmen, about fifteen engraved signs were discovered, but it is » difficult to decipher the meaning, it could be arches, birds or souls flying up to the sky « , he added. The discovered dolmen dates back to the Intermediate Bronze Age (more than 4,000 years old) and sits among other dolmens.
The chamber inside this monument measures two by three meters and the stone that covers it weighs about fifty tons. » We have no idea how those who built this edifice were able to lift such an enormous mass. “, acknowledged Professor Gonen. » These dimensions clearly prove that the building was not erected by a tribe of nomads, but rather within the framework of a society with a power structure capable of mobilizing energies and technologies. “, continued the archaeologist. » But the culture of the people who built these dolmens is one of the great archaeological mysteries in Israel. added the Antiquities Authority.
At least four smaller dolmens have been identified at the foot of the decorated one, which means that we have here a hierarchically constructed monumental structure.
Source: AFP