Golan discovery reveals Byzantine synagogue
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Archaeologists from the University of Haifa and Kinneret Academic College uncovered a Byzantine-era synagogue in the Yehudiya Nature Reserve in the Golan, a region of Israel.
Previous surveys of the area, which included an abandoned Syrian village, found architectural pieces with menorahs suggesting a synagogue existed, but researchers hadn't located the building itself. The team began excavating after noticing column drums laid along a path, and quickly found fragments of architectural elements.
They then revealed the southern wall with three openings facing Jerusalem, and parts of the western and eastern walls. The synagogue measured approximately 42 by 55 feet, leading the archaeologists to believe it was built in the basilica style common to synagogues in that region during the Byzantine period (324 to 634 CE). The team identified over 150 fragments, including lintels, column drums, and decorated basalt stones, many of which were later reused in the abandoned village.
