1,500-year-old stone mosaic buried in ash

A painting in the background of an old church that burned could describe the story of Jesus distributing food.

Part of a stone mosaic at Burnt Church in Israel.(Photo: CNN).

Experts at Haifa University discovered stone mosaic paintings at the ruins of Burnt Church in Hippos, an archaeological site located on a mountain east of Lake Galilee, CNN reported on September 21. The church was built about 1,500 years ago and burned down in the early 7th century.

Stone mosaic picture used to decorate the floor of Burnt Church. It depicts two fish and five loaves of bread, consistent with the story of Jesus sharing food with 5,000 people in the New Testament. There is also the possibility that the painting has a different meaning, but it closely matches the descriptions in the New Testament, according to Michael Eisenberg, who leads the archaeological team in Hippos.

The story does not specify where Jesus gave the food but only wrote it as a remote place. According to some researchers, the site is the Multiplication Church in Tabgha, northwest of Lake Galilee. However, Eisenberg said that the event took place in the east, before God walked on the water and reached the northwestern shore.

The Multiplication Church in Tabgha also has a stone mosaic depicting two fish but only 4 loaves of bread, slightly different from the picture at Burnt Church and the story of the New Testament. Burnt Church's mosaics are well preserved thanks to the fire that burned the place. At that time, the entire roof was burnt and collapsed, creating a layer of ashes 30 - 40cm thick protecting the painting for hundreds of years.

1. Unearthed 1,600-year-old Roman mosaic paintings
2. 2,400-year-old mosaic mosaic puzzle discovered with surprising messages