世界上最古老的清真寺遺址被發(fā)現(xiàn)

世界上最古老的清真寺遺址被發(fā)現(xiàn)

The remains of a 1,200-year-old mosque have been discovered in Israel’s Negev desert. The ancient structure is one of the earliest known mosques in the world, according to experts.

在以色列內(nèi)蓋夫沙漠發(fā)現(xiàn)了一座1200年歷史的清真寺的遺跡。據(jù)專家介紹，這座古老的建筑是世界上已知最早的清真寺之一。

The building was found by the Israel Antiquities Authority, which says that the discovery is an extremely unusual one.

這座建筑是由以色列文物局發(fā)現(xiàn)的，該機(jī)構(gòu)稱這一發(fā)現(xiàn)極不尋常。

“A small rural mosque, dated to the 7th to 8th centuries… is a rare finding anywhere in the world, especially in the area north of [the Israeli Negev desert city of] Be’er Sheva, where no similar building has previously been discovered,” said Dr. Jon Seligman and Shahar Zur, who directed the excavation, in a statement. “From this period there are large known mosques in Jerusalem and in Mecca, but here we have evidence of an ancient house of prayer, which seems to have served the farmers who lived in the area.”

喬恩·塞利格曼博士和沙哈爾·祖爾博士在一份聲明中說：“一座可以追溯到7到8世紀(jì)的、小型的鄉(xiāng)村清真寺……這在世界任何地方都是一個罕見的發(fā)現(xiàn)，特別是在[以色列內(nèi)蓋夫沙漠城市]Be'er Sheva以北的地區(qū)，以前沒有發(fā)現(xiàn)類似的建筑。同期起，耶路撒冷和麥加有許多著名的清真寺，但現(xiàn)在的證據(jù)表明，這里有一座更古老的祈禱之家，為該地區(qū)的農(nóng)民服務(wù)。”

Archaeologists note that the open-air mosque features a “Mihrab,” or prayer niche, that faces south, towards Mecca. “These features are evidence for the purpose for which this building was used, many hundred years ago,” said Seligman and Zur, in the statement.

考古學(xué)家注意到，露天清真寺有一個面向麥加的“Mihrab”，即面向南的祈禱龕。塞利格曼和祖爾在聲明中說:“這些特征證明了這座建筑在幾百年前的用途。”

The mosque was discovered during preparations for the construction of a new neighborhood in the town of Rahat. “This is one of the earliest mosques known from the beginning of the arrival of Islam in Israel, after the Arab conquest” of 636 A.D., Prof. Gideon Avni said in a statement. “The discovery of the village and the mosque in its vicinity are a significant contribution to the study of the history of the country during this turbulent period.”

這座清真寺是在拉哈特鎮(zhèn)準(zhǔn)備建設(shè)一個新社區(qū)時發(fā)現(xiàn)的。“這是公元636年，阿拉伯人征服以色列后，伊斯蘭教傳入以色列時所知的最早的清真寺之一。”阿夫尼(Gideon Avni)在一份聲明中說。“發(fā)現(xiàn)這個村莊及其附近的清真寺，對研究這個動蕩時期的國家歷史做出了重大貢獻(xiàn)。”

Other remains discovered in the area include a farm that dates back to the Byzantine period in the 6th to 7th century A.D. A small settlement from the start of the Islamic period in the 7th to 8th century A.D. was also found.

在該地區(qū)還發(fā)現(xiàn)了其他遺跡，包括一個可以追溯到公元6世紀(jì)至7世紀(jì)拜占庭時期的農(nóng)場，以及公元7世紀(jì)至8世紀(jì)伊斯蘭時期開始時的一個小定居點。

Local Bedouin residents and youth from nearby towns and villages participated in the excavation project.

當(dāng)?shù)刎惗家蚓用窈透浇彐?zhèn)的青年參與了挖掘工程。