ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, April 19, 1997 TAG: 9704210026
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-6 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
COLUMN: In Religion
Buried treasure can be found in the ground or under the water, but either way, it's exciting to look for and to find.
Judy and Merle Pierson of Newport are certified scuba dive masters who have traveled to Israel a number of times as visitors or in connection with Merle Pierson's work in food science and technology. They have combined their interests in diving with a love for the country and its rich history. They are members of an international team of divers, archeologists and architects who are working with a project entitled the Combined Caesarea Expedition, sponsored by the University of Maryland and the University of Haifa.
Caesarea, built on the coast of the Mediterranean around 12 B.C., is located just south of Haifa and 30 miles north of Tel Aviv. Mentioned in the Bible in the book of Acts, Chapter 10, the town was rebuilt by Herod and named in honor of Augustus Caesar. It then served as headquarters for the Roman procurators during the Roman occupation of Judea in the time of Christ.
The expedition's continuing research on the ancient town's harbor and land areas uses modern excavation methods to study the engineering techniques used to construct the large harbor breakwater. The breakwater was destroyed in the first or second century, but sections of it still exist. The Romans made barges of wood frame, stone and a kind of concrete and sank them to form a c-shaped protective harbor.
The Piersons were part of a group that worked in the water every day for a month on the large project. They dredged down under the layers of sand to find these barges, still intact, with the original wood that was used to make the frames. Architects are continuing to study how these were built. Artifacts found in the search, in the layers of strata, were collected to be cleaned, dated and studied.
Merle Pierson said one of the most exciting times of the experience was the couple's discovery of an entire shipwreck under the sand of the harbor. The date of the wreck hasn't been determined yet, but it appears to be from the Byzantine era. They worked at that site for a week.
"When you see the thumbprints of the potter in the clay of a piece of pottery that you've found, history comes alive for you," said Judy Pierson, a theology student at Life Bible College. She said she was thrilled when she found a writing stylus made of bone. "The disciple Paul did some of his writing there in Caesarea; it was exciting to think this might have come from that same time."
The Piersons will present a slide show and discussion about the discoveries at Caesarea at 7 p.m. Thursday at Our Saviour Lutheran Church, 1845 Cambria St., Christiansburg. The public is invited.
Other local religious news:
The Rev. Roger Henderson will lead the revival service beginning at 7 p.m. Sunday at Pembroke Christian Church, Snidow Street, Pembroke. Revival continues Monday and Tuesday, 7 p.m., with the Rev. Jesse Kearns and the Rev. Chris Michael, respectively, as guest ministers. Special music for the services will feature The Christian Jubilees, Marcus Collins, and Bud Dowdy as well as the Pembroke Christian Church choir.
Floyd Parish United Methodist Revival at Havens Chapel United Methodist Church, Terry's Fork, will be held May 1-3 at 7:30 p.m. The final service will be at Copper Hill United Methodist Church on May 4, 11:15 a.m., with a pot luck luncheon to follow the service. The Rev. David Schill of Princess Ann Plaza-Resurrection charge of Virginia Beach will be the speaker.
The Blacksburg Unit of Church Women United will observe May Fellowship Day at 11 a.m. May 2 at Blacksburg Presbyterian Church, Church and Eakin stre
ets. The ecumenical service is entitled "Church Women United - Sowing Seeds in Prepared Soil." The offerings given at the service will go to the local CWU unit to support various charities and ecumenical programs in the community.
LENGTH: Medium: 72 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: Judy and Merle Pierson hold the top of an amphora foundby CNBin the harbor at Caesarea, Israel. An amphora is a jar with two
handles that was used during Roman times.