In find of ancient gold earring, echoes of Greek rule over Jerusalem

An employee of Israel's Antiquities Authority holds a gold earring believed to date back more than two millennia after been unearthed near the site of the ancient Jewish temples in Jerusalem, outside Jerusalem's Old City, August 8, 2018. REUTERS/Ammar Awad

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - A gold earring believed to date back more than 2000 years has been unearthed near the site of the ancient Jewish temples in Jerusalem, in what Israeli archaeologists called rare evidence of Hellenistic influence.

The 4 centimetre (1.5 inch)-long filigree hoop with a ram's head mould, shown here, was discovered during excavations outside Jerusalem's walled Old City. The dig is around 200 metres (yards) south of the Temple Mount, which today houses al Aqsa mosque and is known to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary.