"I don't believe in having preconceptions when you start to dig. "These finds are important because they are helping us understand how people in ancient Jerusalem lived. That's important to me because it is a part of my history," Shukran says.
But neither the Ir David Foundation nor the Shalem Center are funding these digs solely in order to understand more about the past. In interviews with IJ, representatives of both organizations acknowledged that their involvement was geared towards bolstering Israel's current claims to the Jerusalem as Israel's united capital and developing the ancient city of Jerusalem as a constitutive component of Jewish identity.
According to Doron Spielman, spokesman for the Ir David Foundation, their goal has always been to secure as much land as possible in the area, though both settlement and purchase.
To this end, philanthropist Nissan Khakshouri had contributed more than $3 million to the excavation project, but stopped funding the project in 2003. Today, Spielman refuses to say who is funding the project at this time, saying that the funding comes from Ir David's "operating budget."
However, sources close to the project believe that at least some of the funding can be directly and indirectly linked to funders in the United States who have regularly supported right-wing and settlement activities throughout Jerusalem and the West Bank.
Says Rabbi Yehuda Mali, vice president of the Ir David Foundation, "Israel became a people on this small hill. The 12 tribes united under David and became a nation in this place. Ir David, as the center of Jerusalem, attests to the fact that we were once a united people and that we have the ability to become a united people once again."
He points to the central nature of the story of David in Jewish tradition. "David is the most written-about figure in all rabbinic literature, second perhaps only to Moses. He is so central to our collective past that the word Zionism comes from his citadel, Metzudat Zion. The very movement that brought Jews back to this land was called 'Hovevei Zion' (the lovers of Zion) and 'Shivat Zion' (the Return to Zion). Zion is the central place for the entire Jewish people."
Although the Shalem Center would not arrange an interview with Eilat Mazar, David Hazony, editor of Azure, the center's magazine, did eventually agree to an interview.
"Zionism as a whole rests on a major assumption about where Jews came from, that we once had a thriving kingdom ... [and] that the Jewish people have a right to reclaim their ancestral land and establish a sovereign state there."
Referring to Finkelstein, Hazony contends that "the work that many new historians and biblical archeologists are doing in rewriting our Zionist history undermines our traditional Zionist self-understanding and by extension our claim to this country and the city of Jerusalem."
He continues, "The Shalem Center supports Eilat Mazar's excavations because we are always interested in supporting good scholarship when it comes to attacks on our classical narrative. When the truth is on your side, all you need is good scholarship.
"Jerusalem is no longer [considered] a hilltop village. The debate is over. We have made a step towards reclaiming the city."
Reviewing the competing claims and interpretation, biblical scholar Zakovitch comments, "Frankly, it doesn't matter to me how big David's kingdom was. I believe that David was a king and that he was a king in Jerusalem and in my opinion there is no reason to debate that.
"The Bible has a power that has lasted for over two millennia. People longed for Jerusalem, people came here and felt that they were walking in the footsteps of David. So revealing even half a palace doesn't really change anything for most people. In fact, those who are looking for definitive proof will be disappointed. You are never going to find a plaque on a wall which says David the son of Jesse lived here."
And anyway, he continues, "Even if you find David's palace, it doesn't change anything politically. We have the Cave of Machpela in Hebron and some people think we should be there and some people think that we should give it up. Similarly, people who think Jerusalem should be united will keep their opinion no matter what is found, and people who think the city should be divided will keep their opinion as well, and if they want to go visit David's palace they will go with a visa or a passport."
