The Menorah of the Second Temple
While some missing treasures are often described with reference to the many millions of pounds they would be worth if they were found today, there are some you simply can’t put a price on. This is surely true for the Menorah of the Second Temple, a religious artifact that has been missing for centuries. A lack of historical evidence or even clues as to its whereabouts hasn’t stopped the ultimate fate of the Menorah being the subject of countless theories, some significantly more plausible than others.
In the Bible, the Menorah is described as a candelabra with seven arms. While it may originally have had a practical purpose, with olive oil burned on each of its lights to illuminate the Second Temple in Jerusalem, it has long since had a huge symbolic value for the Jewish people. Indeed, the Menorah had served as a symbol of Judaism itself for centuries and these days appears on the coat of arms of Israel. Its potency is only made greater by the fact that it hasn’t been seen for more than 1,000 years, the ultimate lost treasure of an entire people.
The Book of Maccabees in the Old Testament describes how a second Menorah was crafted after the First Temple of Jerusalem was attacked and its treasures pillaged. This replacement didn’t last long, however. In 70AD, with the Roman conquest of Jerusalem, the Menorah was taken to Rome and, according to the writings of Josephus, displayed triumphantly by the returning generals. The records also show that it was then placed in the Temple of Peace, an ancient Roman temple whose construction was funded entirely by the spoils of campaign against Jerusalem, and there it remained for several centuries.
When the Vandals took Rome in 455AD, the Menorah was still on display in the temple. But after that? Nobody knows for sure, and this is the point where academic historians, amateur sleuths and conspiracy theorists start to disagree. The first group believe the simplest explanation is the most likely: as with many treasures of the time, it was melted down or just broken up by the Vandals. Alternatively, the conquerors may have taken it out of Rome and to their own capital. Carthage, though what happened to the Menorah after that is another question.
More colorful explanations include the theory that the Menorah was lost in a shipwreck just outside of Rome. In fact, this idea got such support at one point that in 1919, archaeologists had the River Tiber dredged in a bid to find the lost treasure. Alternatively, some theorists even maintain that the Vatican has the Menorah secreted away in its vaults, or – in a twist that would make Dan Brown proud – that it’s hidden in the vaults of Rome’s Catholic cathedral, with successive Popes keeping the secret safe.