Dig shows Ramat Rahel was once a royal Judean site

The discoveries are said to have changed the known historical picture of Ramat Rahel, which turns out to have been a major royal site whose exact identity is not yet known.

ramat rahel 88 298 (photo credit: Pasha Shargo, Institute of Archeology, Tel Aviv Un)
ramat rahel 88 298
(photo credit: Pasha Shargo, Institute of Archeology, Tel Aviv Un)
A sophisticated ancient water system dating back to the end of the Kingdom of Judah in the Seventh Century BCE and a Muslim structure from the Eighth or Ninth Century CE have been uncovered by Israeli, American and European archeologists at Kibbutz Ramat Rahel south of Jerusalem. Experts from Tel Aviv University, the University of Heidelberg and other academic institutions were involved in the dig. The discoveries are said to have changed the known historical picture of Ramat Rahel, which turns out to have been a major royal site whose exact identity is not yet known.