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First Temple-era figurine mold unearthed in Jerusalem's 'most significant excavation' in decades

Archaeologists in Jerusalem announced two significant discoveries from the First Temple period: a rare mold used to cast the face of a female figurine, found in the Old City, and massive charred wooden beams from a building destroyed in 586 BCE, unearthed in the City of David. Both finds offer new insights into ancient craftsmanship and the destruction of the First Temple.

By Tertius News AI Desk 1 outlet · 2 articles Version 1 Coverage Jul 20–27, 2026 Published Aug 14

Lead

Two significant archaeological discoveries from the First Temple period have been announced in Jerusalem within the past week, shedding new light on ancient craftsmanship and the destruction of the city in 586 BCE. The Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) revealed the finds at separate excavations in the Old City and the City of David, each offering rare insights into life and catastrophe during the biblical era.

Coverage Comparison

The Jerusalem Post reported both discoveries in separate articles published on July 20 and July 27, 2026, both written by Miriam Sela-Eitam. The earlier article described the unearthing of massive wooden beams charred by the fire that destroyed the First Temple, while the later article detailed the discovery of a rare Judean Pillar Figurine mold. Both reports rely on official announcements from the IAA and include quotes from excavation directors and specialists involved in the projects.

Key Claims

Charred Beams in the City of David

According to the Jerusalem Post, archaeologists from the IAA and Tel Aviv University discovered the burnt beams inside a building that had collapsed in the fire that accompanied the Babylonian conquest of Jerusalem in 586 BCE. The First Temple, built by the biblical King Solomon, was destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar II, the second king of the Neo-Babylonian Empire, as reported by the Jerusalem Post.

The beams, which appear to have served as the roof of an inner courtyard in a First Temple-period building, were preserved for approximately 2,600 years. IAA Excavation Director Efrat Bocher explained that plaster melted off the building's walls during the fire, sealing the wood beneath it and protecting it from decay.

Dr. Johanna Regev of the IAA, who is studying the beams, highlighted the rarity of the find. "It is very rare in Israel to find wood with such a large number of growth rings," she said. "Here, in the City of David, we found thick beams with many rings, offering significant research potential, with more growth rings enabling higher dating resolution." Regev added that the precision of dating could improve dramatically: "Until now we could date finds within a range of hundreds of years. Now we can attain much greater precision, narrowing the dating range down to as little as ten years."

The excavation directors, including Dr. Yiftah Shalev, who directs the excavation on behalf of the IAA alongside Professor Y. (as named in the report), noted that Jerusalem's returning residents likely made a deliberate decision to preserve the memory of the destruction by leaving behind remains that tell the story of the catastrophe. "The concept of a landscape of memory is familiar from many cultures around the world," Shalev explained.

Figurine Mold in the Old City

A rare Judean Pillar Figurine mold dating to the First Temple period was found during excavations in the Old City of Jerusalem, the IAA announced. It is the first mold of its kind ever found in Israel to produce such figures dating to that period, as reported by the Jerusalem Post.

The mold, used in antiquity to cast the face of a female figurine, was discovered within the Tower of David Museum during excavations ahead of construction of the new Schulich Wing for Archaeology, Art and Innovation. After its discovery, the mold was handed over to Tamar Gonen, a ceramics conservation and restoration specialist at the IAA, who cleaned the artifact and revealed its inner design of finely crafted facial features. Conservation and restoration specialist Sviatoslav Klindukhov then created a cast from an appropriate material, resulting in a full reconstruction of the face of a female figurine, displaying clearly defined features and an elaborate curly hairstyle.

The article also provided context on the three prominent types of First Temple figurines: female figurines, commonly known as Judean Pillar Figurines; those depicting a horse and its rider; and zoomorphic (animal) figurines, primarily representing horses. Made of clay, these figurines are often between approximately 10 and 20 centimeters high, typically covered in a white coating with traces of pigment indicating original painting in yellow, red, and black. The report noted that when discovered, these clay figurines are often found broken at the neck—a result of the manufacturing technique, in which the head and body were made separately by hand, while only the face was formed using a mold.

How this outlet told it

Jerusalem Post as of Jul 20, 2026, 6:46 AM UTC

Framing: Archaeological discovery — Informative

Facts Included:

Massive wooden beams were unearthed during a dig at the Jerusalem Walls National Park
The beams were charred by the fire that destroyed Jerusalem and the First Temple
The First Temple was built by King Solomon and destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar II in 586 BCE
The beams were preserved for 2,600 years due to plaster that melted off the building's walls
The growth rings of the wooden beams offer significant research potential

Read the source article →

Jerusalem Post as of Jul 27, 2026, 2:01 PM UTC

Framing: Archaeological discovery — Excited

Facts Included:

A rare Judean Pillar Figurine mold was found during excavations in the Old City of Jerusalem
The mold dates back to the First Temple period
The mold was used to cast the face of a female figurine
The figurine was found in the Tower of David Museum
The discovery provides insight into the production of figurines in Jerusalem

Read the source article →

What was claimed, and who backed it

Each row is one claim, attributed to the outlet whose wording states it most clearly. Confidence rates how directly the source text states the claim — explicit and unhedged rates high; hedged, pieced-together, or internally inconsistent statements rate lower. It does not measure whether the claim is true. Status counts the distinct outlets we found asserting it — so a single-source claim can still show high confidence, and a multi-source claim can show medium. Every one of those outlets is named beside the status, so you can check the count against the list. For claims extracted before we began storing that list, the row says so: it names the outlet the claim is quoted from and states that we have not recorded which outlets backed it. Outlets wrote at different times, so a figure that evolves — a casualty count, for example — can legitimately differ between rows; check the "as of" time next to each claim's source.

Claim	Confidence	Status
ClaimMassive wooden beams were unearthed during a dig at the Jerusalem Walls National Park. The beams were charred by the fire that destroyed Jerusalem and the First Temple.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Jerusalem Post as of Jul 20, 2026, 6:46 AM UTC
ClaimThe First Temple was built by King Solomon and destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar II in 586 BCE.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Jerusalem Post as of Jul 20, 2026, 6:46 AM UTC
ClaimThe beams were preserved for 2,600 years due to plaster that melted off the building's walls, sealing the wood beneath it.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Jerusalem Post as of Jul 20, 2026, 6:46 AM UTC
ClaimThe growth rings of the wooden beams offer significant research potential.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Jerusalem Post as of Jul 20, 2026, 6:46 AM UTC
ClaimA rare Judean Pillar Figurine mold was found during excavations in the Old City of Jerusalem. The mold dates back to the First Temple period.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Jerusalem Post as of Jul 27, 2026, 2:01 PM UTC
ClaimThe mold was used to cast the face of a female figurine. The figurine was found in the Tower of David Museum.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Jerusalem Post as of Jul 27, 2026, 2:01 PM UTC

Transparency & Audit Trail

1 outlet · 2 articles consulted: Jerusalem Post 6 claims extracted Version 1 Written 2026-08-14