4,000-Year-Old Preserved Lamp Wicks Discovered

The Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) announced that archaeologists uncovered rare 4,000-year-old wicks that are among the oldest known examples that have been found anywhere in the world. The discovery came as a team was excavating a set of Bronze Age tombs at the site of Newe Efraim near Yehud. Among the burial offerings, which also included pottery, jewelry, and metal weapons, were three clay oil lamps that still contained wicks inside. These objects rarely survive, not only because they were made from natural material that decays easily, but because by design they are intended to be lit and burnt, eventually...