The Jinn and Dowsing Rods: The Recent Tragedy of Antiquities Plundering in Tulkarm, Palestine

Abstract

Over the past several decades, archaeological and historical sites and monuments have faced significant challenges from antiquities looting, particularly as the political strife on the ground has intensified. This ongoing global phenomenon has led to the partial or complete destruction of hundreds of thousands of ancient sites and features, as well as the removal of a large number of art and archaeological objects from their contexts without any kind of documentation. Over the past few decades, looters have increasingly relied on supernatural intermediaries, such as jinn and dowsing rods, to identify buried treasures and other valuable objects, causing damage to archaeological sites and the irretrievable loss of cultural heritage. The two principal goals of this study are to describe a deadly accident involving antiquities looters digging a10-meter-deep shaft-tunnel in Tulkarm, Palestine, and to present the results of a "dowsing blind test" undertaken immediately following that horrific catastrophe.