A financial record dating back 2,000 years has been unearthed on the Pilgrimage Road in the City of David, Jerusalem’s main street during the Second Temple period, the Israel Antiquities Authority announced on Wednesday.

The discovery sheds light on the commercial activities of the time and provides a rare glimpse into the city’s inhabitants’ daily lives.

The inscription on the small stone tablet found was probably a receipt or a payment instruction recorded by a person engaged in commercial activity during the Second Temple period, the independent governmental archaeological body said.

Excavations in the City of David revealed the inscription, which features seven partially preserved lines. The lines include Hebrew names accompanied by letters and numbers. The name ‘Shimon’ appears at the end of one line, followed by the Hebrew letter “mem.” The other lines contain symbols representing numbers, some of which are accompanied by the Hebrew letter “mem” or the letter “resh,” abbreviations for “money” and “quarters,” respectively.

Four similar Hebrew inscriptions have been documented in Jerusalem and Bet Shemesh, all with names and numbers carved on similar stone slabs and dating to the Early Roman period, according to the article. This, however, is the first inscription found to date within the boundaries of the city of Jerusalem at that time.