OMRIT, ISRAEL—A house built in the late first or early second century A.D. has been unearthed at the ancient site of Omrit in northern Israel, reports Live Science. A team led by Carthage College archaeologist Daniel Schowalter excavated the building and found that its floor was covered in plaster and its walls were decorated with elaborate frescoes. The surviving images depict bucolic scenes of trees, plants, and fish, as well as two ducks that appear to be huddling together. Schowalter believes the house may have been built for a Roman official, but that it's also possible a wealthy local could have lived there and commissioned the Roman-style frescoes. The team also unearthed several amulets in the shape of phalluses, which were thought to ward off misfortune during the Roman period. To see elaborate frescoes dating to the same era, go to “Romans on the Bay of Naples.”
