A rare fifth-century amulet depicting a Biblical demon slayer may corroborate missing scripture that claimed King Solomon had power over evil.
The 1,600-year-old bronze pendant, found in Turkey, featured imagery of Solomon defeating the devil with the ancient Greek inscription, ‘Our Lord defeated the devil.’
Solomon, the son of King David, was the focus of a chapter written between the 1st and 5th centuries AD, but it was not accepted into the canonical Bible due to its emphasis on magic and demonology.
Titled ‘Testament of Solomon,’ the book begins with the Archangel Michael gifting Solomon a magical ring to summon, interrogate and control demons.
Now, archaeologists working at the ancient city of Hadrianopolis have uncovered the amulet among the ruins of a military structure that suggested a soldier wore it knowing Solomon could cast away the powers of evil.
There were also names of four holy angels, Azrail, Gabriel, Michael and Israfil, on the back of the amulet, which supported the notion the amulet was used as a symbol of protection.
The 1,600-year-old amulet features King Solomon on horseback with a spear in his hands as he defeats the devil
Solomon is featured in three books of the Bible, with 1 Kings 3:12 saying that God gifted him with ‘a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been anyone like you, nor will there ever be.’
The Bible also described how he generated extreme wealth while king., accumulating at least 25 tons of gold annually.
In 2 Chronicles 1:11, the scripture describes: ‘But since you have asked for wisdom and knowledge to lead my people, over whom I have made you king, I will give you wisdom and knowledge.
‘I will also give you more wealth, riches, and honor than any king who has lived before you or any who will live after you.’
But the Testament of Solomon tells a different side of the wealthy king, one who battled demons – and the amulet suggested that ancient people believed the stories to be true.
Associate Professor Dr. Ersin Çelikbaş, Department of Archaeology, Faculty of Letters, Karabük University, said: ‘No similar examples have been found in this geography before.
‘This pendant, used as an amulet, draws attention with the inscriptions on both sides and the depiction on it.
‘The amulet depicts Prophet Solomon on a horse, holding a spear, defeating the devil.
Archaeologists working at the ancient city of Hadrianopolis have uncovered the amulet among the ruins of a military structure that suggested a soldier wore it knowing Solomon could cast away the powers of evil
Solomon, the son of King David, was the focus of a chapter written between the 1st and 5th centuries AD, but it was not accepted into the canonical Bible due to its emphasis on magic and demonology
The find was made during excavations of a fortified structure in the ancient city of Hadrianopolis in Paphlagonia, near modern-day Eskipazar, in Karabük Province
‘Prophet Solomon is an important figure in all three holy religions. While he is mentioned as a ruler in the Torah and the Holy Bible, he is also accepted as a prophet in Islam.’
King Solomon is known as Hz. Süleyman in Islam, who was also known as the commander of armies.
‘We understand that he was also thought of as a protective figure for the cavalrymen of the Roman and Byzantine periods in Hadrianopolis,’ Dr Çelikbaş said.
The angels mentioned on the back of the pendent are also part of different religions.
Azrail is the angel of death in Islam and is responsible for transporting the souls of the deceased to the afterlife.
And Israfil, also known in the religion, was an archangel who would blow a trumpet to signal the Day of Resurrection.
Gabriel and Michael are known in the Christian faith, with the former being a messenger for God and the latter known as a spiritual warrior in the battle of good versus evil.
The pendant was likely worn by a solider as a symbol of protection
An iron face mask (pictured) that would have been worn by an accomplished member of the Roman cavalry some 1,800 years ago has been unearthed in northern central Turkey. The team found this relic in 2021
However, Dr Çelikbaş explained that he and his team believed the pendant was a Christian artifact.
The ancient city of Hadrianopolis was first known as Uskudama by the tribal people called Thracians who inhabited the region from the 1st century BC to the 8th century AD.
However, the city was later rebuilt by the Roman emperor Hadrian around 124 AD and today is called Edirne.
Dr Çelikbaş and his team have been working at the site since 2003, finding ancient Roman relics and structures, including two baths, two churches, a theatre, rock tombs, a monumental niche, a villa and a square, fortified building.
In 2021, they discovered an iron face mask in the building that would have been worn by an accomplished member of the Roman cavalry some 1,800 years ago.
‘Rome planned to make its defense at the far end [of its empire] by building bases against all kinds of dangers that may come from the Black Sea Region to its territory,’ Dr Çelikbaş explained.
‘We think that Hadrianopolis is one of these defensive military cities.
‘The [mask] belongs to the imperial period. It is very likely — when we look at similar examples and [the stratigraphic location of the find] — from the 3rd century AD.’
