Beit Alpha | Israel
Beit Alpha is a late fifth-century synagogue situated at the foot of the northern slopes of the Gilboa mountains near Beit She’an, Israel. It is now part of Beit Alfa Synagogue National Park and managed by the Israel Nature and Parks Authority. The Beit Alpha synagogue was uncovered in 1928 by members of the nearby Kibbutz Hefzibah, who stumbled upon the synagogue’s extensive mosaic floors during irrigation construction. Excavations began in 1929 under the auspices of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and were led by Israeli archaeologist, Eleazar Sukenik. A secondary round of excavations, sponsored by the Israel Antiquities Authority in 1962, further explored the residential structures surrounding the synagogue. In addition, a hoard of 36 Byzantine coins were found in a shallow depression in the floor apse. Architectural remains from the Beit Alpha synagogue indicate that the synagogue once stood as two-story basilical building and contained a courtyard, vestibule, and prayer hall. The first floor of the prayer hall consisted of a central nave measuring 5.4 meters wide, the apse, which served as the resting place for the Torah Ark, the bema, the raised platform upon which the Torah would have been read, and benches. The Torah Ark within the apse was aligned southwest, in the direction of Jerusalem. Inscriptions The northern entryway features two dedicatory inscriptions in Aramaic and Greek. Although partially destroyed, the Aramaic inscription indicates that the synagogue was built during the reign of Roman Emperor, Justin I (518-527 CE) and was funded by communal donations. The Greek inscription thanks artisans “Marianos and his son Hanina,” whom were also listed as the artisans of the nearby Beth Shean synagogue. The inscriptions are flanked on either side by a lion and a buffalo, who serve as the synagogue’s symbolic guardians. Binding of Isaac The northern panel depicts the “Binding of Isaac” (Genesis 22: 1-18). To the right, Abraham is depicted dangling Isaac over the fiery altar as he raises his hand to perform the sacrifice. In the centre, God, symbolized by the small fire- encircled hand appearing in the upper centre, instructs Abraham to sacrifice a nearby ram instead of Isaac. The hand of God is aptly labeled with “al tishlah” or “do not raise,” taken from God’s command to the angel that Abraham not “raise his hand against the boy [Isaac]” (Genesis 22:12). In the lower centre of the composition, immediately below the hand of God, the ram that served as Isaac’s substitute is positioned standing sideways, trapped in the nearby thicket.[13] The odd positioning of the ram may perhaps be a convention the artists used to convey the distance that the Bible says separated Abraham and Isaac, from the two servant boys (Genesis 22:5), who accompanied Abraham and Isaac on their journey, and are depicted standing to the left. All the figures in the scene, except for the two servants, are identified with Hebrew labels. The iconographic significance
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