JERUSALEM — Israel’s Antiquities Authority says Facebook users have solved the mystery of a gilded object thought to be an ancient Jewish relic.
Director of theft prevention Amir Ganor says police alerted his office six months ago to a gold scepter with eight grooves found in a Jerusalem cemetery.
Ganor says his office X-rayed the scepter and analyzed its materials. He mused whether it was used in the biblical Jewish Temples. Experts did not recognize it.
With no further ideas, the authority posted a picture on Facebook and one of 300 responders identified the object: It’s a Weber Isis Beamer, a German device that supposedly creates “a protective field” against radiation.
“The wisdom of the masses has done its part,” the authority said Tuesday.