YAVNE, ISRAEL—A 2,200-year-old lead sling bullet has been unearthed in central Israel by researchers from the Israel Antiquities Authority, according to an i24 News report. Yulia Ustinova of Ben Gurion University of the Negev said the object bears a Greek inscription reading, “Victory of Heracles and Hauronas,” the divine patrons of the city during the Hellenistic period. “Actually, the inscription on a sling bullet is the first archaeological evidence of the two guardians of Yavne, discovered inside Yavne itself,” Ustinova said. “Until today, the pair was only known from an inscription on the Greek island of Delos.” Calling on the gods could have unified the warriors, raised their spirits, scared the enemy, and may have been thought to energize the sling bullet itself, she added. To read about a 1,500-year-old gold and amethyst ring found at Yavne, go to “Around the World: Israel.”
