Israeli archaeologists have uncovered a 1,500-year-old synagogue in the Golan Heights at the Yehudiya Nature Reserve, after decades of surveying the site.

The basilica-style building, roughly 13 by 17 meters, features two rows of columns, benches along the walls, and architectural elements including a tabula ansata and stones engraved with a menorah.

Many items from the synagogue had previously been reused in houses across the abandoned Syrian village, making it difficult to pinpoint the original structure, the Times of Israel has reported.

The preliminary dating suggests the synagogue was built between the late Roman and Byzantine periods, adding to the roughly 130 ancient synagogues documented in Israel.