The search for the Ark that inspired the Indiana Jones blockbuster has been given a new lease of life.
The Ark of the Covenant, a wooden and gold-plated box, is believed to contain the famous stone tablets which bear the Ten Commandments.
But despite its fame, nobody has ever been able to find the sacred box.
Now, researchers from Israel and France are reigniting the quest to find the Ark by excavating a little-explored biblical site believed to have once held the lost artifact. The ancient site of Kiriath-Jearim, in west Jerusalem, will be opened up for the first time this summer.
'The place is important for several reasons,' Professor Israel Finkelstein, from Tel Aviv University, told The Times of Israel.
'It's a large, central site in the Jerusalem hills that hasn't been studied until now.
'It may be the only key site in Judah that hasn't undergone a systematic archaeological excavation.'
The Ark was stored at Kiriath-Jearim for two decades, according to the Book of Samuel. The ancient site is referred to as a place of worship multiple times in the bible, and has various names including Kiryat Ye'arim, Kiryat Ba’al, Ba’alah and Ba’ale Judah. Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-4223292/Ten-Commandments-search-reopened-Jerusalem.html#ixzz4YgjVlQ4y