A Ming mystery: Earliest known Chinese inscription in Israel discovered in Jerusalem

While ancient Chinese porcelain has been found in Israel before, this is the first discovery featuring actual Chinese inscription.

By ALEX WINSTON DECEMBER 3, 2024 11:05

A small shard of porcelain, dating from the Ming Dynasty (1520–1570), containing the earliest known Chinese inscription discovered in Israel.

Jerusalem’s Mount Zion is full of mystery and surprises, but this summer, archaeologists unearthed a treasure that had experts scratching their heads—and smiling with delight. Amid the dust and ruins of a site dating back to the Byzantine and Second Temple periods, a glint of porcelain revealed a remarkable find: a fragment of a 16th-century Chinese bowl bearing a poetic inscription in Mandarin, “Forever we will guard the eternal spring.”

For three years, the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) and the German Protestant Institute of Archaeology (GPIA) have been digging deep into Mount Zion's storied past. Led by Professor Dieter Vieweger, their excavation has mainly unearthed ancient relics from over 1,500 years ago. But this small shard of porcelain, dating from the Ming Dynasty (1520–1570), rewrote some of the known narratives of the site’s history.

It began when Michael Chernin, an archaeologist with the IAA, spotted a colorful object peeking out from the soil during site preparations. Intrigued, he carefully retrieved and cleaned the fragment, revealing an inscription. Enter Dr. Anna de Vincenz, a pottery specialist, who quickly identified the markings as Chinese. To decipher the text, the team turned to Jingchao Chen, a researcher from Jerusalem’s Hebrew University, who translated the poetic phrase that graced the bowl.

The bowl’s journey from China to Mount Zion is a story of empires and trade routes. In the 16th century, the Ming Dynasty enjoyed flourishing trade relations with the Ottoman Empire, which at that time ruled the Land of Israel. Historical records describe at least 20 Ottoman delegations visiting the imperial court in Beijing between the 15th and 17th centuries.

Chinese scholar Ma Li’s writings from 1541 provide further clues, noting Chinese merchant colonies in cities like Beirut, Tripoli, and even Jerusalem. These trade links brought not only exotic goods like spices but also elegant items such as porcelain, a prized commodity across the globe.

The researchers with the rare inscription. (credit: Emil Aladjem, Israel Antiquities Authority)

While ancient Chinese porcelain has been found in Israel before, this is the first discovery featuring an inscription. “It’s a tangible reminder of how interconnected the world was, even centuries ago,” said Eli Escusido, director of the IAA. “This poetic message in Chinese, found in such an unexpected place, adds a beautiful new chapter to Jerusalem’s story.”

As the excavation continues, one thing is clear: Mount Zion has more secrets to share, and this Ming Dynasty masterpiece is proof that history’s greatest stories often come in the smallest packages.

A history of two peoples

The Hebrew term for China, "Sin" is found in the Jewish scriptures of the Tanakh, notably in Isaiah Chapter 49, Verse 12, which states:

הִנֵּה-אֵלֶּה, מֵרָחוֹק יָבֹאוּ; וְהִנֵּה-אֵלֶּה מִצָּפוֹן וּמִיָּם, וְאֵלֶּה מֵאֶרֶץ סִינִים

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Behold, these shall come from far; and, lo, these from the north and from the west, and these from the land of Sinim.

Although there is no conclusive evidence linking the Biblical term of the land of Sinim geographically to the modern nation of China, the extensive network of ancient trade routes, such as the Silk Road, makes it plausible that traders from the Orient, including regions of what is now China, reached the Levant, bringing with them goods, ideas, and cultural influences that enriched the Mediterranean world.

Michael Chernin from the Israel Antiquities Authority with the inscription he found. (credit: EMIL ALADJEM/ISRAEL ANTIQUITIES AUTHORITY)

A long history of Jews and China

Historically, the first documented interactions between Jews and the Chinese date back to the 11th century, when Jewish merchants traveling along the Silk Road established a small community in Kaifeng, located in Henan Province. This marked the beginning of a long, albeit intermittent, history of encounters between the two civilizations.

The native Chinese Jewish community is still commonly known as "Kaifeng Jews." Some historians have noted that there is a chance, though undocumented, that Jews reached Kaifeng as early as the 7th or 8th centuries and lived in China during the Tang and Song dynasties (7th to 13th centuries CE).

One of the most significant interactions occurred during World War II when China extended refuge to Jews fleeing persecution in Europe. The protection provided to European Jews during this dark period remains a testament to the humanitarian bond shared between the two peoples. Centuries earlier, Jewish traders and Chinese communities interacted sporadically, but these moments laid the groundwork for the mutual respect that would later define their relationship.

David Ben-Gurion, one of Israel's founding fathers and its first prime minister, recognized China’s importance on the global stage well before the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948 or the People's Republic of China (PRC) in 1949. As early as 1937, Ben-Gurion emphasized the strategic significance of fostering ties with China. After the PRC was established, Israel was among the first countries to formally recognize it. However, full diplomatic relations were not established until January 1992.