For 10+ years I patiently waited for news, finally it came. Using carbon dating on seeds, twigs and dirt, Regev et al unambiguously showed that the Rock-Cut-Rooms, on the eastern slope of Mount Moriah are sandwiched between two sources of evidence dated to the Middle Bronze Age approximately 3500 and 3800 years ago.
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| Bronze Age Rock-Cut-Rooms |
This is important because all archaeological evidence on the bedrock of these rooms was removed in the Iron Age II, around 2600 years ago when builders for King Hezekiah constructed the recently discovered eastern city wall (W20005 - W20021). Based on this evidence, before the rooms were first uncovered 2600 years ago they lay buried, out of use for some 900 years. No evidence of this time-frame showed up in the carbon dating report.
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| Area U and Rock-cut Rooms (V. Essman and O. Rose) Approximate evidence locations marked in red. |
You following this? These rooms were in use up till 3500 years ago, then they stopped being used for 900 years, then 2600 years ago they were discovered, uncovered and immediately buried, finally they were re-discovered and uncovered again in 2011.
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| East-side evidence samples |
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| West-side evidence samples |
Stunningly, the flimsy matzevah at the west end of room 4 (Area U map above) was intact as far back as 3600 years ago, the time of biblical Jacob. This perfectly fits the time-frame of evidence discovered on both sides of the rock-cut-rooms. Further, as the evidence stretches back to 3700 or 3800 years it suggests the rooms were actively in use at that time.
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| Matzevah (Pillar) of Jacob? |
Eli Shukron, the archaeologist who excavated these rooms is unequivocal, this is the first temple that ever existed on Mount Moriah, a thousand years before the First Temple of King Solomon. If this is the matzevah of Jacob (Genesis 28:18, 28:22, 31:13, 31:45, 35:14, 35:20), then this is also the Beit El where Abraham built an altar, tithed to Malchi-Tzedek and offered his son, Isaac. Could it be?
Awesome chunk of History I like stuff like this thanks for sharing
ReplyDeleteShalom
Mitakuye O'Yasin
After David killed the Amalekites that burned Tziklag, Shmuel says he sent booty to 13 Judean cities. Among them was Beit El. The Traditional Beit El is further north than Yehuda, in Binyamin. It seems unlikely David sent booty to Binyamin, the home town of Shaul. Perhaps this is the Beit El from that passuk! (Shmuel 1- Chapter 30, verse 27).
ReplyDeleteThanks - Interesting passuk!
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