Unearthed at the Topraktepe archaeological site, this image of Jesus is a rarely-seen variant known as the "Farmer Christ" that honors his connection to agriculture, fertility, and the cycles of the natural world.

Archaeologists routinely find artifacts like pottery or human bones while excavating ancient sites. But during excavations in the ancient city of Irenopolis in present-day Turkey, archaeologists stumbled upon something much more rare: bread. Specifically, they found five intact, centuries-old loaves of bread — and one of them featured a depiction of Jesus.

Though they date back to the seventh or eighth century C.E., the loaves were naturally preserved via carbonization. Now, they’re providing a rare look at religion and culture in the region more than 1,000 years ago.

The 1,30

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