The discovery came as part of police’s ongoing investigations into the violent clash between two feuding families in Silwan that occurred over the weekend and led to the deaths of three people.
Due to the warm climate, researchers only managed to extract usable DNA from the remains of one of the men, estimated to have been around 45-years-old, called Menga1.
Analysis of the site also shows that the structure had been continuously used from the 2nd century BCE to the 6th century CE, with only minor architectural modifications happening during that time.
Within the charcoal, archaeologists found traces of ash, willow, oak, olive, pistachio, grapevine, oleander, and the oldest known evidence of pomegranate wood in the Levant.
Based on this, researchers suggest that early homo sapiens planned for the long-term acquisition of resources earlier than previously thought.
Originally destroyed by the Persians in 614 CE, the mosaic was painstakingly restored by the IAA over the course of two years, and officially opened to the public in 2022.
Researchers have for decades believed that of these diseases, only syphilis could be transmitted congenitally, lending to the assumption that syphilis began with Christopher Columbus’ journeys.
