The anniversary of the destruction of King Solomon's temple along with the fall of Jerusalem in the Old Testament is marked by significant archeological discoveries from the site. Ash from the fires that burnt the city, arrows belonging to invaders and an earring were uncovered while digging took place on Mount Zion. The earring stands as the second piece of jewelry that belongs to that era and was found in the archeological digging that was carried out in and around Jerusalem.
Jerusalem was sieged by Babylonian forces in the end of 586 or 587 BCE, an event repeatedly mentioned and described in the Bible. Much of the Judah population were killed, while many were taken to Babylon to be imprisoned and tortured.
While the Bible is not often considered to be a reliable historical source, the discovery of layers of ash and smashed pottery in 2017 reveals that some of the events described in the book might be acurate.
After inspection was carried out, it was later confirmed that the layer originates from the city's destruction, revealing some of its contents. The ash, which was located on Mount Zion outside the walls of the old city, contained Scythian-style arrowheads - a type known to have been used by the Babylonians. The ash also contained pieces of broken pots and lamps, along with an earring made of a gold and silver mix.
Dr Shimon Gibson from the University of North Carolina thinks that the archeological site of the excavated findings might be one of the 'great man's houses', a place which was burnt when the Babylonians invaded the city -an event mentioned in the biblical Book of Kings.
He said in a statement:
"Nobody abandons golden jewelry and nobody has arrowheads in their domestic refuse. It's the kind of jumble that you would expect to find in a ruined household following a raid or battle. Household objects, lamps, broken bits from pottery which had been overturned and shattered… Frankly, jewelry is a rare find at conflict sites, because this is exactly the sort of thing that attackers will loot and later melt down."
Further archeological discoveries this summer have also revealed basements from the time of King Herod, as well as part of the defenses used to forestall the Crusaders in 1099.
[h/t: IFL Science]
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