BOAZ ZISSU / BAR-ILAN UNIVERSITY
The expansive Teomim Cave, just 20 miles west of Jerusalem, has yielded a variety of objects that suggests it was the site of necromancy in the second through fourth centuries CE. In antiquity, caves were considered gateways to the underworld, and this sometimes led to the performance of necromantic or divinatory rituals in which mediums consulted the spirits of the dead. Such ceremonies frequently involved the kinds of objects that archaeologists found in Teomim Cave: oil lamps, human skulls, metal implements for repelling spirits, and bowls for pooling and reflecting water.
According to local lore, Teomim Cave (the “Cave of the Twins”) is associated with the supernatural. The cave’s name in both Hebrew and Arabic refers to a legend about an infertile woman who drank from the water pooled in the cave and then gave birth to twins. This led to a traditional belief in the healing power of the cave’s water. The cave’s role in ancient necromancy thus fits within a more extensive tradition surrounding the site’s magical significance.
The expansive Teomim Cave, just 20 miles west of Jerusalem, has yielded a variety of objects that suggests it was the site of necromancy in the second through fourth centuries CE. In antiquity, caves were considered gateways to the underworld, and this sometimes led to the performance of necromantic or divinatory rituals in which mediums consulted the spirits of the dead. Such ceremonies frequently involved the kinds of objects that archaeologists found in Teomim Cave: oil lamps, human skulls, metal implements for repelling spirits, and bowls for pooling and reflecting water. According to local lore, Teomim Cave (the “Cave of […]
