- Feb 5, 2002
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Ivory box containing 'depiction of scenes from the Old Testament' found amid excavations
Archaeologists conducting excavations at the site of a church have unearthed a marble shrine containing a relic that they believe may be tied to Moses receiving the Ten Commandments.
The shrine contained a 1,500-year-old ivory box adorned with Christian motifs, according to an Innsbruck University press release.
The item was discovered by archaeologists from Innsbruck University in southern Austria under an altar inside a chapel at the summit of Burgbichl, a small hill, in the municipality of Irschen.
Since 2016, archaeologists from the University of Innsbruck have been carrying out excavations in Irschen, which is a part of the Carinthian Drava Valley.
Since 2016, archaeologists from the University of Innsbruck have been carrying out excavations in Irschen, which is a part of the Carinthian Drava Valley. (University of Innsbruck)
"We know of around 40 ivory boxes of this kind worldwide and, as far as I know, the last time one of these was found during excavations was around 100 years ago – the few pyxes that exist are either preserved in cathedral treasures or exhibited in museums," Gerald Grabherr, the lead archaeologist, said in the release.
One motif shows a man turning his head with a hand rising out of the sky above him, placing something between the person's arms, followed by depictions of biblical figures.
Continued below.
Archaeologists discover ancient relic believed to be tied to Moses and the Ten Commandments
Archaeologists at a university unearthed a marble shrine containing an ivory box dating 1,500 years, which is believed to be tied to Moses and the Ten Commandments.
