193 BABESCH 94 (2019), 193-210. doi: 10.2143/BAB.94.0.3286786 Hadrian in Ioudaea The Celebration of the Emperor Examined Throughout the Tel Shalem Bronze Statue Paolo Cimadomo, Luca Di Franco, Silvio La Paglia Abstract This study aims to analyse the bronze statue of Hadrian found in Tel Shalem (in the territory of ancient Scythopolis, today Bet Shean, in Israel) and now located at the Israel Museum of Jerusalem. Several studies have been made on this statue, in particular analysing the peculiar scene depicted on the lorica of the emperor. This image, in particular, has been read in many different ways, without consensus on its proper interpretation. According to our analysis, there is a clear need to contextualise the statue in a wider and more complex background, linking it with its surroundings and the occasions that could have led to the erection of the statue. After re-examining in detail all prior theories and readings of the image on the emperor’s chest, we conclude that the statue was erected for some event before the Bar Kokhba revolt. INTRODUCTION: CONTEXT FINDINGS Emperors’ sculptures have been rarely found in the Galilean region or, more broadly, into the entire area of Roman Palestine. 1 However, a bronze torso with an armour (lorica), now preserved at the Israel Museum of Jerusalem, 2 is a notable exception. It stands out from the other findings for its peculiar- ities and relevance. The face is easily recognisable: it depicts the Emperor Hadrian. Some pieces of the statue’s head and right arm were accidentally found on the 25 th of July 1975 by an American tourist, Morton Leventhal, in the site of Tel Shalem, 12 km south of Bet Shean (the ancient city of Scythopolis) (fig. 1), while he was looking for coins with his metal detector. 3 Other fragments were unearthed during excavations in 1975 and 1976 directed by Gideon Foerster, who attempted to clarify the nature of the context. 4 The investigations revealed that a Roman legionary camp, measuring approximately 210 x 180 m, had been erected in the area around the torso. 5 The military fort, according to the stratigraphic and material evidence, had a short life. In fact, it was probably used from the end of the 1 st or the beginning of the 2 nd century CE up to the middle of the 2 nd century CE. 6 The statue, found together with a bronze portrait of a young boy, was located in a brick building located in the northern area of the camp (figs 2, 4). Fig. 1. Tel Shalem overview (photo authors).