Investigating the Holy Cave of Nazareth, Israel: Preliminary Results
Mentor 1
Dr. Harry Jol
Location
Union Wisconsin Room
Start Date
24-4-2015 2:30 PM
End Date
24-4-2015 3:45 PM
Description
Ground penetrating radar (GPR) surveys were conducted to examine possible archeological features beneath the present day floor of the Holy Cave in Nazareth, Israel. The Holy Cave is located 7m below surface and in close proximity (100m) to the Greek Orthodox Church of the Annunciation and Mary’s Well. In order to better understand the Holy Cave we used a combination of oral and literal historical knowledge and GPR surveys. The present day floor of the Holy Cave was examined using a GPR system, pulseEKKOTM 1000, and utilizing 225,450, and 900 MHz antennae frequencies. In addition, topographical data was collected using a laser leveler TopCon H3L to geometrically correct GPR data. In this work we present two GPR lines and a rectangular grid; i) 26m GPR line with 225 MHz antennae frequency was collected along the length of the cave (south east-west direction). The eastern portion (3m-17m) of the GPR line was interpreted as a depression in the subsurface, with penetration depth of ~.7-2.0m, ii) 18m GPR line with 225 MHz antennae frequency was collected along the length of the cave (north east-west direction). The western portion of this line was interpreted as a possible bedrock with sub horizontal layering in ~1.5m depth, iii) 4x6m grid was laid out on the eastern portion of the cave floor and 16 parallel lines were collected in a west-east direction with data lines separated by 0.25m. The collected data sets were put into a 3D model of the grid to better understand subsurface layering. The GPR lines show sub-horizontal layering that is interpreted as infill layers that accumulated on the cave floor. / These findings strengthen the hypothesis that possible archeological features are present beneath the present day floor in the Holy Cave. Our study has laid the foundation for future work that would propose the Holy Cave as an original site for excavation, as well as exploration of the city of Nazareth in innovative ways that have never been done before. This future site will not only benefit the community of Nazareth, it will also contribute to the academic domains of science and humanities. /
Investigating the Holy Cave of Nazareth, Israel: Preliminary Results
Union Wisconsin Room
Ground penetrating radar (GPR) surveys were conducted to examine possible archeological features beneath the present day floor of the Holy Cave in Nazareth, Israel. The Holy Cave is located 7m below surface and in close proximity (100m) to the Greek Orthodox Church of the Annunciation and Mary’s Well. In order to better understand the Holy Cave we used a combination of oral and literal historical knowledge and GPR surveys. The present day floor of the Holy Cave was examined using a GPR system, pulseEKKOTM 1000, and utilizing 225,450, and 900 MHz antennae frequencies. In addition, topographical data was collected using a laser leveler TopCon H3L to geometrically correct GPR data. In this work we present two GPR lines and a rectangular grid; i) 26m GPR line with 225 MHz antennae frequency was collected along the length of the cave (south east-west direction). The eastern portion (3m-17m) of the GPR line was interpreted as a depression in the subsurface, with penetration depth of ~.7-2.0m, ii) 18m GPR line with 225 MHz antennae frequency was collected along the length of the cave (north east-west direction). The western portion of this line was interpreted as a possible bedrock with sub horizontal layering in ~1.5m depth, iii) 4x6m grid was laid out on the eastern portion of the cave floor and 16 parallel lines were collected in a west-east direction with data lines separated by 0.25m. The collected data sets were put into a 3D model of the grid to better understand subsurface layering. The GPR lines show sub-horizontal layering that is interpreted as infill layers that accumulated on the cave floor. / These findings strengthen the hypothesis that possible archeological features are present beneath the present day floor in the Holy Cave. Our study has laid the foundation for future work that would propose the Holy Cave as an original site for excavation, as well as exploration of the city of Nazareth in innovative ways that have never been done before. This future site will not only benefit the community of Nazareth, it will also contribute to the academic domains of science and humanities. /
