archaeological excavations

Archaeologists uncover previously unknown 1,600-year-old early Christian basilica in northern Italy

A vast early Christian basilica dating back approximately 1,600 years, previously unknown to scholars, has been discovered in the Italian town of Oderzo, in the province of Treviso, northern Italy. According to a report by Archaeo Reporter, the discovery was made on the site of the town’s former fish market during preventive archaeological excavations that…

Jul 9, 2026Aurelian Iftimiu

Byzantine-era basilica ruins discovered near Fethiye Fortress in Southwestern Turkey

Near the outer walls of the fortified citadel overlooking Fethiye Bay in Muğla Province, southwestern Turkey, archaeologists have discovered the ruins of a basilica likely dating back to the Middle Byzantine period (9th–12th centuries AD). The discovery was made during archaeological excavations conducted by experts from the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism, under the…

Jul 11, 2025Aurelian Iftimiu

Scroll fragments with the texts of prophets Zachariah and Nahum found in the Judean Desert

The Israel Antiquities Authority  (IAA) has discovered in some desert caves 80 new fragments of a 1,900-year-old Biblical scroll with texts from prophets Zachariah and Nahum. Marcello Fidanzio, the Director of the Archaeological and Cultural Institute of Biblical Lands in Lugano, declared for Vatican News it is the first discovery of note since the great…

Mar 19, 2021Ștefana Totorcea

Egypt: Team led by Romanian archaeologist discover world’s oldest known monastery

A Franco-Norwegian team led by Romanian archaeologist Victor Ghica discovered the oldest archaeologically attested monastic site in the world. The site is 370 kilometers south-west of Cairo, Egypt, and it dates back to the 4th century. The discovery made at Tall Ğanūb Qaṣr al-‘Ağūz, in the al-Bahariya oasis, certifies that Christian monasticism was born in…

Mar 17, 2021Ștefana Totorcea

New findings on an old settlement from the Cradle of Christianity

The June edition of Atiqot, an Israeli research journal, illumines the Christianity of a Byzantine settlement from old Galilee, destroyed by Persian invaders in 613 AD. Archeologists have just finished their analysis of this site, which was partially unearthed in 2007 at Pi Mazuva, in northwestern Israel. “While for now, we have no documents from Christian…

Jul 8, 2020Ștefana Totorcea

Archaeologists search for St Vlas’ tomb in Sivas, Turkey

Archaeologists dig for St Vlas’ tomb in Turkey. He was the Bishop of Sebasta in the IVth century and a martyr for Christ during the persecutions of emperors Diocletian and Licinius. In the Turkish province of Sivas, experts are digging to find St Vlas’ tomb, according to Daily Sabah. The Orthodox Church honors the saint…

Jun 24, 2020Ștefana Totorcea

16th century St. Nicholas icon discovered during excavations at Moldovan fortress

An ancient icon was recently unearthed during archaeological excavations at a Moldovan fort originally built by St. Stephen the Great in the 15th century. A team of students from the History and Geography Department of the Ion Creangă Pedagogical State University in Chişinău discovered a 16th-century bronze icon of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker while searching…

Jul 19, 2019Mihail Mere-Albe