When he had cleaned the earth off it a pictorial representation of a human figure emerged. As he did not know what he was dealing with, Ben-Shitrit quickly posted photos of the ring on Facebook.

He could also have asked his neighbor, Dror Ben-Yosef, who works as a researcher for the Israel Parks Authority, and recognized that this could be a spectacular discovery. Ben-Yosef sent Ben-Shitrit with the ring to the Antiquities Authority.

There, archaeologist Yana Tchekhanovetz was absolutely delighted: “This exceptional ring has been very well preserved. On the ring one can see a picture of a bald man who is holding a curved bishop’s crook in his hand. It appears that we are talking here about Saint Nicholas, whose hallmark was this curved staff. In Orthodox Christianity, St. Nicholas is regarded as...

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