At a place called Beit Alpha, we saw the remains of the mosaic floor of an ancient synagogue depicting the Zodiac on the way to Tel Aviv.
The three mosaic panels depict traditional Jewish symbols such as a Torah ark, two menorahs (seven-branched candelabras) and a shofar (ram’s horn) alongside a spectacular, 12-panel Zodiac circle, a pagan element if there ever was one. At the bottom, above inscriptions in Aramaic and Hebrew, Jacob (holding a knife) is shown about to sacrifice his son Isaac, alongside the ram that God (represented by a hand from heaven) sent to be sacrificed in the boy’s stead; each character is labeled in Hebrew.
