Byzantine-era mosaics in an olive farm in a refugee camp in the Gaza Strip


Digging in their olive orchard in the Bureij refugee camp in the Gaza strip, Salman al-Nabahin and his son unearthed a Byzantine mosaic dating from the 5th to the 7th century CE. The mosaic floor was "unveiled," for the first time according to Aljazeera, on Friday, 16 September, "boasting 17 iconographies of beasts and birds," brightly colored and "well-preserved." Have a look at these wonderful pictures.

The Gaza strip holds tremendous archeological treasures. The Gaza coastline, battered repeatedly by war like all of Gaza, has revealed a Roman-era fountain near the al-Shati refugee camp, as well as iron age and Hellenic sites and artifacts. However, in view of the continual threat of destruction from Israeli forces, Forensic Architecture has been conducting a digital record of the existing landscape and associated archeological treasures. Check out this fascinating 10-minute video from Forensic Architecture on the motivation for and the process of digital preservation.