Bulldozers digging for an Egyptian-funded housing project in the Gaza Strip have unearthed the ruins of a Roman-era tomb, Hamas authorities said Monday.
The Palestinian Ministry of Tourism and Archeology said its teams had seized items found in the tomb and called for construction work to stop. An independent archaeologist, however, said photos he had seen suggested the site was a cemetery rather than a tomb.
According to local media, people, some of whom use donkey carts, looted numerous artifacts from the site northwest of Gaza City. Locals said archaeological items including coffin covers and engraved bricks were found a week before the ministry’s announcement.
Gaza, a coastal enclave home to over 2 million people, is known for its rich history stemming from its location on ancient trade routes between Egypt and the Levant. But decades of conflict and rapid urban growth in a cramped and crowded territory are among the reasons why most of Gaza’s archaeological treasures have gone unprotected.
An independent archaeologist briefed on the matter said photos suggest the site was a cemetery dating from the late Roman to early Byzantine period 1,600 years ago.
“They indicate that a Roman temple or a Byzantine church is nearby,” said the expert, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to comment.
A general view shows the construction site where an ancient cemetery dating back to Roman times was unearthed, in Gaza City on January 31, 2022. (Photo by Mahmud HAMS / AFP)
Last week, authorities from Hamas, the terror group that forcibly took control of Gaza from the Palestinian Authority in 2007, sponsored the inauguration of a 5th-century Byzantine church that has been restored by organizations local and international non-governmental organizations as a museum.
But in 2017, the same authorities destroyed large parts of a 4,500-year-old Canaanite settlement to pave the way for housing projects for their own employees.
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