13-year-old taking selfies at park stumbles on 1,700-year-old artifact, photos show

While snapping photos at a park along the Israel-Syria border, a teenager spotted something “strange” on the ground. His family had their doubts, but he picked it up anyway — and found a 1,700-year-old artifact.

Itamar Grossman’s family and their visiting cousins decided to go to Sussita National Park for a free evening of events, Israel Nature and Parks Authority said in a Sept. 4 news release. The 13-year-old and his cousin went up a vantage point to take pictures.

What started as Itamar taking selfies ended in something unexpected, the Israel Nature and Parks Authority said in a Facebook post.

Something on the ground caught Itamar’s attention, the release said.

“It was a strange and ancient-looking ring,” Itamar said, according to All Israel News. “My brothers and cousins who were with me didn’t think it was anything old, just a ring someone had dropped.”

But the teenager insisted on taking the ring to his parents and park officials, the release said.

Sarit Pilachi Miara, an Israel Nature and Parks Authority official, said, “When Itamar and his mother, Liat, approached us and showed us the ring they found, we immediately realized it was something significant,” according to All Israel News.

Archaeologists identified the ring as an ancient Roman artifact, the release said. The bronze ring still had engravings on it. Officials said the ring was 1,700 years old but it could date back as far as the first to fourth centuries A.D.

Photos show the worn brown ring.

Sussita National Park is a nature and archaeological park with the ruins of an ancient city, according to Israeli officials. The city was founded about 2,300 years ago, flourished under the ancient Roman empire, and was abandoned in 749 A.D. after an earthquake struck.

The park is in Golan Heights, a disputed territory between Israel and Syria, according to Britannica. Golan Heights is in northeastern Israel and southwestern Syria. The region also borders Lebanon to the north and Jordan to the south.

Google Translate was used to translate the news release and Facebook post from Israel Nature and Parks Authority.

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