Archeological investigation in the Land of Israel

There are some 20,000 recognized sites of antiquity in Israel that are protected by law. Every year, dozens of sites from every period of history and in all parts of the country are excavated. Licenses to excavate are issued to expeditions - from Israel and abroad - by the Israel Antiquities Authority, which is entrusted with the preservation of the country's antiquities. Israel's Antiquities Law requires every site slated for construction to be examined for archeological remains and a salvage excavation to be conducted if deemed necessary. The state also has the right to preserve finds of public interest; some of the more important of these are exhibited at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem.

Archeological research in Israel accords much importance to the fact that the country is the home of the spiritual heritage of the great monotheistic religions. Above all it clearly reveals the historical link between the Jewish people, the Bible and the Land of Israel, uncovering the remains of the cultural heritage of the Jewish people in its homeland. These visible remains, buried in the soil, constitute the physical link between the past, the present and the future of the Jewish people in its country.

See full report at http://tinyurl.com/36b6ahr

And now an amazing result from a dig showing proof of 2,000 years of water in Jerusalem. A spectacular arched bridge that was part of the ancient aqueduct which conveyed water to the Temple Mount in Jerusalem was exposed in archaeological excavations the Israel Antiquities Authority conducted near the Sultan's Pool

Work on the city's modern water infrastructure uncovered a section of Jerusalem's ancient aqueduct. While the Gihon Corporation was working on the sewage infrastructure in the vicinity of the Sultan's Pool in the Jerusalem Walls National Park, a section of Jerusalem's ancient aqueduct was discovered.

In the wake of this discovery, the Israel Antiquities Authority conducted an excavation in which a spectacular arched bridge was revealed that was part of the very old aqueduct that conveyed water to the Temple Mount.

The bridge was built in 1320 CE (in the Mamluke period) by Sultan Nasser al-Din Muhammed Ibn Qalawun, as evidenced by the dedicatory inscription set in it; however, it was apparently constructed to replace an earlier bridge dating to the time of the Second Temple period that was part of the original aqueduct."

See http://tinyurl.com/3xaj5ml