While hiking near a quarry, a 13-year-old boy in Israel discovered a ring believed to be around 1,800 years old.
According to reports from foreign media outlets, including the New York Post, on the 21st, 13-year-old Yair Whiteson noticed and picked up a small green item while hiking with his father near a quarry in Israel.
Whiteson explained, “It was corroded, and at first, I thought it was just a rusty bolt. I thought about heating it, but then, fortunately, I understood it was a ring,” he added. “At home, I saw an image on it. At first glance, I thought it was a warrior.”
Whiteson and his family contacted the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) to report the find.
After examination, experts at the IAA determined it was made of bronze approximately 1,800 years ago. Dr. Eitan Klein, who evaluated the artifact, explained that the ring’s design depicts Minerva, also known as Athena in Roman mythology. He stated, “On this beautiful ring, preserved in its entirety, is the image of a helmeted naked figure. In one hand, she holds a shield, and a spear in the other.”
When the ring was crafted, Minerva was a highly popular figure in the region of Israel. Symbolizing wisdom, she was considered the goddess of war and military strategy.
The original owner of the ring remains unknown. Experts speculate that it may have belonged to a woman or girl during the late Roman period, suggesting possibilities that it could belong to someone who lived on a Roman farm near the Carmel Mountains or was lost by a quarry worker during labor. It might also have been a burial offering in a tomb at an ancient site.
The media noted that the discovery adds valuable information to existing archaeological records. As a result of this finding, Whiteson received a commendation for good citizenship, and the IAA plans to display the ring at the National Campus for Israeli Archaeology.
