{Majed Othman
Wazwaz is the same antiquities dealer that sold the “JAMES SON OF JOSEPH
BROTHER OF JESUS OSSUARY” to Oded Golan. “Golan says it was some time in the
early 1970s that he purchased a simple stone ossuary from one of these dealers,
Ot’man Waz-Waz, that was typical of the type used by Jews in Roman
times.” (MATTHEW KALMAN, Jerusalem Post, Forged in faith – Acquitted
antiquities collector Oded Golan discusses his future, JUNE 12, 2012).
IRON AGE II CLAY FIGURINE FRAGMENTS
FROM EXCAVATIONS
Yonatan Nadelman, Institute of
Archaeology, Hebrew University of Jerusalem
“The
discovery of figurine fragments in the vicinity of the Temple and the
administrative compound is extremely interesting if their findspots are indeed
near the places of their original use. From the Bible it is known that idolatry
was practiced, in defiance of the laws of the national cult, not only near
Jerusalem of this period (II Kings 23:13) but also near and periodically within
the Temple itself (II Chron. 29:5-7, 33:15). It should be noted that clay
figurines were also found at non-Israelite/Judean sites where such cultic
practices would be expected (Holland 1977, pp. 125-131).”
“These
figurines are perhaps identifiable as teraphim (II Kings 23:24) or other types
of niddah, ‘filthiness’ (II Chron. 29:5), mentioned as being worshipped instead
of the Israelite’s God (see Encyclopedia Biblica, Jerusalem, Vol. VIII, 1982, pp. 935-936, s.v.
teraphim; Vol. I, 1955, pp. 495-497, s.v. ephod; Vol. VI, 1971, pp. 526-529,
s.v. pesel). The three cultic reforms by Hezekiah (II Kings 18:4; II Chron.
29:3, 16, 30:14, 31:1), Manasseh (II Chron. 33:15), and Josiah (II Kings
23:4-20; II Chron. 34:3-5, 7) reacted severely by destroying these objects.”
(QEDEM Monographs of the institute of Archaeology – The Hebrew University of
Jerusalem, EXCAVATIONS IN THE SOUTH OF THE TEMPLE MOUNT – The Ophel of
Biblical Jerusalem, Appendix A, Yonatan Nadelman, 1989, p. 123).