Israeli researchers on Wednesday displayed a Roman-era golden ring with an early Christian symbol for Jesus inscribed in its gemstone, found in a shipwreck off the ancient port of Caesarea.
The thick octagonal gold ring with its green gemstone bore the figure of the “Good Shepherd” in the form of a young shepherd boy in a tunic with a ram or sheep across his shoulders.
The ring was found among a trove of third-century Roman coins, as well as a bronze eagle figurine, bells to ward off evil spirits, pottery, and a Roman pantomimus figurine in a comic mask, the Israel Antiquities Authority said in a statement.
“The spectacular items, were part of a cargo of two ships, which exploded off the shores of Caesarea during the Roman and royal period (about 1,700 years ago and about 600 years ago), and were revealed in a submarine survey of the Ancient Authority’s marine archaeology in recent months,” the group said in a Facebook post.
