Clay rattles made in Syria about 4,500 years ago were designed to “amuse and calm” infants, according to a new study. But some archaeologists think they were used in rituals to dispel evil ...

The earliest rattle dates to 2450 B.C., while the youngest came from another level dated to between 2300 and 2000 B.C., making all the rattles more than 4,000 years old, according to the study.

Hana Levi Julian Published: Feb 23, 2010, 1:00 PM (GMT+2) Updated: 1:19 PM Jewish World Made In Israel Purim Clay rattle, Jerusalem's City of DavidIsrael news photo: Clara Amit, courtesy of IAA ...

The use of rattles during the public readings of the Book of Esther is a symbolic expression of the battle against the Amalekites, the first people whom the Israelites fought as they wandered in ...

More information: Georges Mouamar et al, Infant Care in Early Bronze Age Syria: Newly Identified Clay Rattles at Hama, Childhood in the Past (2025). DOI: 10.1080/17585716.2025.2489258 ...

Toymakers have been around far longer than many people realise, a Danish researcher told AFP Friday after the discovery of 19 ancient rattles some dating back at least 4,500 years. Mette Marie Hald, ...

The rattles became widespread in the third millennium B.C., researchers said, sometimes made of clay while other times made from gourds or other material.

The earliest rattle dates to 2450 B.C., while the youngest came from another level dated to between 2300 and 2000 B.C., making all the rattles more than 4,000 years old, according to the study.