What did Jerusalem look like at the time of the kings of Judah some 2,500 years ago?
In the past few years, some new archaeological discoveries at the outskirt of the city have shed new light on the centuries that separate the Assyrian military campaign in the region in the last decades of the 8th century BCE and the Babylonian conquest in 586 BCE, which resulted in the destruction of Jerusalem and its temple.
“What we have uncovered is a level of wealth that we could not imagine before,” Prof. Yuval Gadot, the head Department of Archaeology and Ancient Near Eastern Cultures at Tel-Aviv University - and co-director of the excavations conducted by TAU and the Israeli Antiquities Authority at the City of David - said.
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Salvage excavations conducted in preparation for new construction projects in the Arnona and Armon Hanatziv neighborhoods have exposed remains of monumental buildings that suggests that Jerusalem remained a vital center within the Assyrian-dominated region.
In light of new discoveries, also the renowned structure from the First Temple period at Ramat Rachel needs to be considered under a different light, not as an isolated complex a few kilometers from the city, but rather as part of a constellation of buildings.
The topic will also be covered during the conference “New developments in archaeology in Jerusalem and surroundings” organized by TAU, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, the IAA and other partners on October 6-7 at the Begin Heritage Center in Jerusalem.