Migdal Synagogue

Migdal, identified with Magdala, is a town on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee.[4] The synagogue discussed here was exposed in 2009 during an archaeological rescue excavation at the site of a planned hotel on Migdal beach.[2][5] The excavation took place on the settlement’s eastern side, in an area described as industrial; at the time, the building was reported as the first Second Temple-period synagogue found in the Galilee.[3]

Archaeologists dated the building broadly to approximately 50 BCE–100 CE. Pottery, coins and tools found at the site were among the evidence used to date its use to the late Second Temple period.[5][6] The building belongs to a small group of synagogues identified as dating to that period, although published counts differ according to source, date and scope.[2]

A survey of earlier excavations at Migdal describes a decorated public building measuring 9 by 7 meters, with columns on three sides and a water channel. Its excavators dated the original floor to the first century BCE and a later floor to the first century CE. V. Corbo proposed that the building began as a small synagogue and later became a spring-house; E. Netzer argued instead that it was a spring-house from the outset, citing its architecture and the lack of significant changes between the two phases.[7]

The same survey discusses a Jerusalem Talmud tradition about people from Migdal asking Rabbi Simeon ben Lakish whether they could take stones from their town to build in another. Leibner interprets the question as possibly referring to stones from a destroyed synagogue in the second half of the third century CE. He notes that the surveys covered by his account had not identified a monumental synagogue and suggests that the building may have been difficult to distinguish among ruins and dwellings.[7]

The Talmud passage records the ruling that the stones could not be taken and continues with Rabbi Immi’s instruction against moving them even from one part of the town to another because of the destruction of that place. The passage does not itself identify the stones as synagogue remains; that identification is Leibner’s interpretation. Sefaria’s accompanying note characterizes the ruling as an ad hoc measure rather than an invariable rule of religious law.[8]

The first synagogue’s hall measured about 120 square meters and had mosaic paving.[9] Archaeologists also uncovered colorful frescoes, stone seating areas and columns.[10]

A carved stone block found inside the synagogue became known as the Magdala Stone. It is rectangular, with a seven-branched menorah on one short side, flanked by large jars and columns; its long sides bear architectural carvings, and a six-petaled rosette appears on top.[2] Another account describes the menorah as standing on a pedestal with a triangular base.[6]

The carvings have been interpreted as evoking the Jerusalem Temple and its vessels. Researchers have proposed that the stone may have served as a table on which the Torah was opened during public readings, or as a base for a stand holding Torah scrolls; these are proposed functions rather than established identifications.[11][5]

The Magdala Stone’s menorah relief has made it a particularly significant find. Its carvings have been described as “the earliest known synagogue images of the Temple Menorah” and as evidence that synagogues served as sacred spaces before the Temple’s destruction.[1]

Dina Avshalom-Gorni, director of the excavation, described the discovery as “exciting and unique.” She said the menorah was the first discovered in a Jewish context from the Second Temple period or the beginning of the Early Roman period, and suggested that its maker had seen the seven-branched menorah in the Jerusalem Temple.[2] Another account reports her suggestion that the artist may have seen the Temple menorah during a pilgrimage; this remains an interpretation of the image’s possible source.[6]

University of Haifa archaeologist Adi Erlich said researchers had assumed that synagogues were less necessary while the Jerusalem Temple stood. The discovery of two Migdal synagogues led researchers to reconsider that assumption. The menorah image has also been read as indicating that local Jewish activity remained oriented toward Jerusalem as its religious center.[3]

In 2021, after a period of study, the original stone went on display in the Sanhedrin Trail exhibition at the Yigal Allon Center; a replica had previously been displayed at Migdal.[11]

A second synagogue from the Second Temple period was reported at Migdal in 2021. The two buildings are less than 200 meters apart: the first stood in an industrial area, while the second was beside a residential street. Excavation director Avshalom-Gorni said their locations showed that synagogues were built “within the social fabric of the settlement,” and described the second building as serving study, Torah reading and social gatherings.[3]

The second building was constructed of basalt and chalk. Its remains included a main hall, two side rooms, a stone bench and six pillars that had supported the roof, with the bases of two pillars surviving. The walls were plastered and colorfully decorated; a small room at the southern end of the main hall contained a shelf that researchers thought might have held scrolls.[3]

Finds from its excavation included pottery lamps, molded glass bowls, coins and stone utensils used for purification rituals. The discovery followed work associated with the expansion of Route 90; part of the structure had appeared in preliminary excavations before archaeologists identified it as a synagogue.[3]