The finding is truly amazing: it is about a mosque dating from the beginnings of Islam It was discovered by archaeologists in Israel, reports the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
It’s about a imperfect rectangle measuring 22 by 49 meters and with a patio of uncertain size in the Israeli city of Tiberias, on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee.
The architecture of the building indicates that it is an important mosque where members of the community held sermons on Fridays.
With the help of coins and ceramic pieces found, the structure was considered to be from 7th century, shortly after the Muslim conquest of Palestine.
Archaeologist Katia Cytryn-Silverman at the mosque excavation site in Tiberias. Photo: David Silverman
Because the first mosques are revered and serve as foundations for the constructions of this type that followed, excavations are not usually carried out. RT.
The oldest aljama previously found was that of Wasit, in Iraq: it had been built in 703. In this way, according to Haaretz Katia Cytryn-Silverman, who spearheaded the excavation work, the Tiberias Mosque It is the oldest researched in the world.
“The first mosque in Egypt is in the same place to this day, but it changed over the years and we do not know how it was originally,” said the archaeologist.
And he added: “The same happened in Jerusalem. We also do not know what the mosque in Medina looked like; we can only theorize, based on the sources, that it was simple and was made of palm trunks.”
Vestiges of the mosque found in Israel. Photo: Rafael Langier Goncalves
Cytryn-Silverman indicated that construction technology differed from the common in Palestine of those times: “The simple and pragmatic style may have reached Israel at the beginning of the Arab conquest in the 7th century,” he estimated.
An interesting detail is a Byzantine church excavated right next to the mosque. According to experts, near there a monumental synagogue should also be located, according to the portal.
The finding only shows what it was a multi-religious zone and a poignant symbol of regional coexistence.
In addition, they reveal that the time when these monumental structures were active is considered the peak period of the city.
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source https://pledgetimes.com/find-in-israel-archaeologists-find-astonishing-7th-century-mosque-one-of-the-oldest/
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