Arab Immigration and the 1948 Refugees
Rooted in the land?
June 7, 2016
Exploring the Cave of Skulls
The everyday lives of 2nd-century Jewish rebels.
From 132 to 136 CE, Simon bar Kokhba led a revolt against Roman rule of Judea; despite its initial success, the rebellion resulted in a devastating defeat that effectively ended aspirations for an imminent return of Jewish independence. Returning to the caves in the Judean desert, first discovered decades ago, that bar Kokhba’s troops used as hideouts, Israeli archaeologists are hoping to get to any remaining artifacts before looters do. At the focus of the project is the Cave of Skulls, so called because of the human remains found there in 1953. Ilan Ben Zion writes: