A group of British archaeologists have found a large complex near the ancient city of Ur that they claim is the home of the biblical Abraham.
The discovery was made by a group of British archaeologists working at nearby Tell Khaiber. The site, which is about the size of a football field, was described by professor of Near Eastern Archaeology at Manchester University Stuart Campbell as rare because of its large size.
"This is a breathtaking find and we feel privileged to be the first to work at this important site," Campbell said. "The surrounding countryside, now arid and desolate, was the birthplace of cities and of civilization about 5,000 years ago and home to the Sumerians and Babylonians."
The site was first discovered by satellite, after which a geographical survey and trial excavations took place. Campbell indicated the researchers will implement modern technology to boost their understanding of the site's time period. Currently the discovery is dated to 2000 B.C.
"Because of the gap in archaeological work in this region, any new knowledge is important to archaeologists in this area - and this find has the potential to really move forward our understanding of the first city-states," Campbell told The Huffington Post.
According to National Geographic, Ur was most likely established around the fifth millennium B.C. and was a large commercial hub. It was discovered in the 1920s and 1930s and is thought by many biblical scholars to be Abraham's birthplace.
Abraham is described as the "spiritual father of the Jews" and the Old Testament references Abraham's family members with a location named Ur of the Chaldeans. Accordingly, some believe that Abraham's home was Ur. There are now separate theories regarding Abraham's birthplace and the archaeologists are still working on the site.
The site is not the only striking archaeological discovery made in recent days. Earlier this week Italian archaeologists uncovered Pluto's so-called "gate to hell" in Turkey. A prominent fixture in Greco-Roman mythology, the cave is one of many hellish portals fabled to exist on Earth.
