Toddler’s 'Pretty Rock' Turns Out To Be A 3,800-Year-Old Amulet

April 4, 2025

Today's good news story comes from Tel Azeka, Israel.

During a family outing near Beit Shemesh, 3.5-year-old Ziv Nitzan made an incredible discovery—an ancient Canaanite scarab amulet dating back 3,800 years!

child finds ancient artifact on walk Israel
Photo by Emil Aladjem, Israel Antiquities Authority

Ziv and her family were walking near Tel Azeka when she bent down and picked up what she thought was just a pretty rock.

“She picks everything up off the ground,” her father, Shahar, said in a phone interview. “She always finds small things and brings [them] with her.”

Her sister Omer quickly realized it was something special.

“We were walking along the path, and then Ziv bent down – and out of all the stones around her, she picked up this particular stone,” recounts Omer Nitzan, Ziv's sister. " I called my parents to come see the beautiful stone, and we realized we had discovered an archaeological find!"

The family promptly contacted the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA), ensuring the artifact would be preserved for historical study.

Experts later confirmed the object as a Middle Bronze Age scarab, a tiny, intricately carved seal used in ancient Canaan and Egypt. These scarabs, shaped like dung beetles, symbolized renewal and divine creation in Egyptian culture.

toddler finds ancient artifact on walk Israel
Photo by Emil Aladjem, Israel Antiquities Authority

"The scarab seals are tiny ornate objects, originating in ancient Egypt and designed in the shape of a dung beetle," the IAA shared. "This beetle, considered sacred in the eyes of the ancient Egyptians, was a symbol of new life, because of the dung ball it created and then laid its eggs into it, from which new life would hatch. Its name in Egyptian derives from the verb 'to come into being', or 'to be created'. This is because the Egyptians saw the scarab as a symbol of the incarnation of God the Creator."

In recognition of her remarkable find, the IAA awarded Ziv a certificate of appreciation, and her discovery will now be displayed at the Jay and Jeanie Schottenstein National Campus for the Archaeology of Israel during a special Passover exhibition.

According to IAA spokeswoman Yoli Schwartz, children come across ancient artifacts a few times each year.

“Sometimes after the rain, the earth is rich with archaeological finds and things come up,” she said.