17-Year-Old American Student Finds 3,300-Year-Old Egyptian Cobra Seal at Tel Gezer

Late Bronze Age artifact features Egyptian protective symbols at the biblical city rebuilt by King Solomon.

Mercy Herald staffNovember 14, 20262 min read

Obverse and reverse of the cobra-bearing Late Bronze Age scarab from Gezer. Courtey Israel Antiquities Authority, edited by author. Photo: Biblical Archaeology Society (aguardando autorização)

Seventeen-year-old high school student Shiloh Attoun was walking along a path at Tel Gezer during a study tour when he noticed a small object lying on the ground. Upon picking it up, he realized he was holding a 3,300-year-old scarab seal engraved with cobras dating to the Late Bronze Age.

Attoun had arrived in Israel two days earlier to attend an educational program with the Alexander Muss High School in Israel, operated by Jewish National Fund-USA. He consulted his tour guide, who promptly contacted officials to evaluate the artifact found within the national park in the Judean foothills.

Professor Ido Koch from Tel Aviv University's Department of Archaeology and Ancient Near Eastern Cultures examined the item. Koch noted that the seal features two upright cobras above a semi-ellipse representing the Egyptian hieroglyph 'nb', which translates to "lord."