Russian archaeologists excavating at the site of the ancient Greek city of Phanagoria, on Russia’s northern Black Sea coast, say an ancient synagogue they unearthed last year was part of a larger Jewish quarter that included a winery, garden, residential houses, and public buildings.
The announcement was made November 15 by Oleg Deripaska’s Volnoe Delo Foundation, which has funded the research being carried out by the Institute of Archaeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The Institute also posted a report.
“The ancient Phanagoria synagogue was built no later than the early 1st century AD and was destroyed by barbarian tribes in the 6th century,” the announcement said.
It was located in the city’s most affluent neighbourhood, at the junction of two main streets. It featured opulent architectural features, with the columns, a table for Torah readings, menorahs and bas-reliefs all crafted from imported marble. The synagogue was part of Phanagoria’s Jewish quarter, which also included a vineyard, a garden with clay pithoi used for irrigation, various buildings, and a water distribution network.
Phanagoria was a major city in ancient times, and excavations have been going on there for decades.
Archaeologists had long found evidence, including gravestones marked with menorahs, that a Jewish community had existed there at least from the first century CE.
The Federation of Jewish Communities of the CIS quoted a news conference held by the Institute of Archaeology head Vladimir Kuznetsov:
The seating for worshippers [in the synagogue] was made of wood, and behind the synagogue was a large oven for baking bread. Clear evidence also points to the existence of a mikvah nearby. The entire area, situated close to the sea in the region separating the Azov Sea to the south and the Black Sea, was ideal for community life and was part of Phanagoria’s Jewish Quarter, which also included a winery, courtyards with clay irrigation barrels, residential buildings, and a water supply system. In the eastern part of the synagogue stood the Ark, and the western room was used for meals and gatherings. Among the ruins, charity boxes and 58 copper coins were found on the floor.
A unique discovery was Hebrew inscriptions on food items, suggesting that traveling Jewish merchants brought kosher products to Phanagoria. Surrounding the ancient synagogue’s ruins, the remains of the Jewish quarter were discovered, along with several Jewish artifacts from the first and second centuries CE.
The Volnoe Delo Foundation announcement said several Jewish manumissions dating back to the 1st and 2nd centuries CE had also been discovered in the area of what is believed to have been the Jewish quarter.
“These documents granted freedom to slaves on the condition that they continue serving at the synagogue,” it said. “This missionary work allowed the Jewish community to ensure safety during times of persecution against Jews.”
Some outside experts urged caution about the reports of the discoveries, saying they awaited a full, detailed report on the excavations.
“At this stage the information provided is extremely limited making full judgement of the importance of this excavation and its findings difficult to assess,” JHE was told by one archaeologist who has had experience working on ancient sites. “[The reported discovery] is a strange outlier chronologically, geographically and artistically.”
See the Volnoe Delo Foundation announcement
Read the report about Vladimir Kuznetzov’s news conference
See a report on the Institute for Archaeology web site
See our post from last year about the synagogue