Jerusalem? The Proof is in the Ancient Coins and Seals - by Dov Lipman

The Palestinians can travel the world and spread their lies about the Jews not having a connection to Jerusalem and the Temple Mount all they want. False claims are one thing. Clear archaeological evidence is another. The Jewish people lived in the land of Israel and the stories of the Jewish Temples recorded in the Bible and historical documents now have that archaeological support.

Dov Lipman..
Honest Reporting..
05 June '19..

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has shifted over the last decades from trying to destroy Israel with the help of neighboring Arab armies to the Palestinian leadership and its supporters seeking to delegitimize Israel’s right to exist. A primary focus of this effort has been an attempt to disconnect the Jewish people from having any historical connection to Jerusalem and the Temple Mount. Convincing the world that the Jewish people have no connection to this disputed area further cements the narrative that Israel is an occupying force in this land, and especially in Jerusalem.

This began with a declaration by Yasser Arafat on October 11, 1996, in which he said, “That is not the Western Wall at all, but a Muslim shrine.” (Ma’ariv, Oct. 11, 1996)

This approach continued on November 22, 1997 when the Mufti of Jerusalem, Sheikh Ikrama Sabri, who is the PLO’s senior religious authority for the city and was appointed by Arafat, said: “The Al-Buraq Wall [Western Wall] and its plaza are a Muslim religious property, and the Israeli government’s decisions do not affect it…The Al-Buraq Wall is part of the Al Aqsa Mosque. The Jews have no relation to it.”

(Continue to Full Post)

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Jerusalem’s Walls, Breached Again - by Jonathan S. Tobin

...In a negotiation predicated by a genuine mutual commitment to coexistence, Jerusalem might be shared in some way and Jews might continue to live in peace and security in places like Shilo, just as Arabs live inside pre-1967. But instead, the Palestinians continue to act in a manner that is the moral equivalent of the Roman attack on the wall that the Romans destroyed 1,946 years ago. That’s a thought that should only stiffen the resolve of Israel and its friends to ensure that Jerusalem’s walls are never again breached.

AP Photo/Oded Balilty

Jonathan S. Tobin..
Commentary Magazine..
20 October '16..
Link: https://www.commentarymagazine.com/foreign-policy/middle-east/israel/2151376-jerusalem-walls-breached-again/

In a saner era, the latest archeological discovery in Jerusalem would be the sort of thing only academics or ancient history buffs would care about. But in a month when UNESCO has voted repeatedly to treat Jerusalem’s holiest spots as if they were solely Muslim, the dig that located the site where the Romans breached the capital’s walls during the great Jewish revolt in 70 C.E. is of more than academic interest. It is not only yet another reminder of the insidious nature of the war still being waged to extinguish the rebirth of Jewish sovereignty in the Jewish homeland.

The details of the discovery are exciting to those who care about this chapter of history during which the second Jewish commonwealth ended. Archeologists have uncovered the remains of the “Third Wall” that protected the northern extremity of the capital during the Roman siege that ended in the city’s destruction as well as the burning of the Second Temple. The dig, which was supervised by the Israel Antiquities Authority, also found the remains of one of the guard towers that dotted the defensive structure as well as stones that were the ammunition for catapults the Romans used to pummel and ultimately break through the wall, as the historian Josephus attested. The defeat of the defenders at this spot gave the Romans the chance to get inside the city. It would take them another two and a half months to get through the other two inner walls and begin the orgy of murder and destruction that ended Jewish independence for two millennia.

It is hardly surprising that such fascinating artifacts could be found in the heart of Jerusalem. And that is the problem for the Palestinians and their supporters in institutions like UNESCO. All you have to do to prove the existence of historic Jewish ties to Jerusalem is to start digging virtually anywhere in the city or, for that matter, anywhere in the country. That’s why Palestinians and their supporters are so quick to resist archeological work in and around the Old City such as the separate dig at the City of David—a site that points to an even more ancient Jewish kingdom a thousand years before the Romans laid waste to the city.

Pretending, as the Palestinians and now the majority at the UN agency that claims to be its educational, scientific and cultural organization do, that the Temple Mount and the Western Wall—the heart of the Jewish city that the Third Wall was built to protect—is Muslim a statement of astonishing ignorance. The stones of the Temple Mount and the remains of part of its outer enclosure that make up the Wall are living evidence of 3,000 years of Jewish history as well as the events and places that are integral to the beginnings of Christianity. But it’s far more than that. This revisionism is at the heart of a century-old effort to deny Jewish history and the rights of the Jewish people to their homeland and its capital.

“This is the Citadel of King David, this is the Citadel of Zion...

...Shukron’s dig, which began in 1995, uncovered a massive fortification of five-tonne stones stacked six metres wide. Pottery shards helped date the fortification walls to be 3,800 years old. They are the largest walls found in the region from before the time of King Herod, the ambitious builder who expanded the Second Jewish Temple complex in Jerusalem almost 2,100 years ago. The fortification surrounded a water spring and is thought to have protected the ancient city’s water source.

Daniel Estrin..
Associated Press/National Post..
06 May '14..
H/T Elder of Ziyon

JERUSALEM — An Israeli archeologist says he has found the legendary citadel captured by King David in his conquest of Jerusalem, rekindling a longstanding debate about using the Bible as a field guide to identifying ancient ruins.

The claim by Eli Shukron, like many such claims in the field of biblical archeology, has run into criticism. It joins a string of announcements by Israeli archeologists saying they have unearthed palaces of the legendary biblical king, who is revered in Jewish religious tradition for establishing Jerusalem as its central holy city — but who has long eluded historians looking for clear-cut evidence of his existence and reign.

The present-day Israeli-Palestinian conflict is also wrapped up in the subject. The US $10-million excavation, made accessible to tourists last month, took place in an Arab neighbourhood of Jerusalem and was financed by an organization that settles Jews in guarded homes in Arab areas of east Jerusalem in an attempt to prevent the city from being divided. The Palestinians claim east Jerusalem, captured by Israel in 1967, as the capital of a future independent state.

Shukron, who excavated at the City of David archeological site for nearly two decades, says he believes strong evidence supports his theory.

“This is the citadel of King David, this is the Citadel of Zion, and this is what King David took from the Jebusites,” said Shukron, who said he recently left Israel’s Antiquities Authority to work as a lecturer and tour guide. “The whole site we can compare to the Bible perfectly.”

Most archeologists in Israel do not dispute that King David was a historical figure, and a written reference to the “House of David” was found in an archeological site in northern Israel. But archeologists are divided on identifying Davidic sites in Jerusalem, which he is said to have made his capital.

The fortification was built 800 years before King David would have captured it from its Jebusite rulers. Shukron says the biblical story of David’s conquest of Jerusalem provides clues that point to this particular fortification as David’s entry point into the city

Shukron’s dig, which began in 1995, uncovered a massive fortification of five-tonne stones stacked six metres wide. Pottery shards helped date the fortification walls to be 3,800 years old. They are the largest walls found in the region from before the time of King Herod, the ambitious builder who expanded the Second Jewish Temple complex in Jerusalem almost 2,100 years ago. The fortification surrounded a water spring and is thought to have protected the ancient city’s water source.

Jerusalem Dig Strikes Rare Gold

...That means the perpetrators of the campaign are rigorously blind to the beauty of the Jewish people’s reencounter with its roots, digging deep in long-abandoned ground and finding… itself. Peace will come when Islam as a whole can acknowledge other loci of light, all having the same source even if filtered through different prisms.

P. David Hornik..
pjmedia.com..
22 September '13..

This year Israel received a wonderful New Year’s (Rosh Hashanah) gift from a team of archeologists led by Eilat Mazar.

She announced that, at the foot of the Temple Mount, the team had found a large gold medallion, “remarkably well kept and glittering,” with reliefs of a seven-branched menorah, a shofar, and a Torah—timeless fundaments of Judaism well familiar in Israel and much of the Jewish world today.

The medallion was in a fabric bag; along with it was another fabric bag containing 36 gold coins and other artifacts.

Mazar assessed that the medallion and coins were abandoned in 614 CE, the year of the Persian conquest of Jerusalem. She added:

The position of the items…indicates that one bundle was carefully hidden underground, while the second bundle was apparently abandoned in haste and scattered across the floor….

[T]he most likely explanation is that the findings were earmarked as a contribution toward the building of a new synagogue at a location that is near the Temple Mount….

What is certain is that their mission, whatever it was, was unsuccessful, and its owners couldn’t return to collect it.

Mazar believes the medallion was an ornament for a Torah scroll, which would make it “the earliest such archeological find in history.” As for the coins, an Israeli expert said they “can be dated to the reigns of different Byzantine emperors, ranging from the middle of the 4th century CE to the early 7th century CE.”

Also this year Mazar’s team discovered the oldest known inscription in Jerusalem—from around 1000 BCE at the time of King David, a period of Jewish sovereignty in Israel. The medallion, however, comes from almost half a millennium after the loss of Jewish sovereignty and attests to the ongoing attachment to Jerusalem and the Temple Mount.

An attachment that continued up to the astounding restoration of Israel in our era.

Discovery helps uncover ancient Jerusalem

For many years, the prevalent belief in archaeological circles was that during the First Temple era, Jerusalem’s water supply came only from the Gihon spring • Many cisterns and reservoirs from the time of the Second Temple have been discovered, but the ones from the First Temple era seem to have been swallowed by the earth • Several weeks ago, for the first time, the Antiquities Authority discovered a large water cistern from the First Temple era at the foot of the Temple Mount – which poses a challenge to the existing theory • “This reservoir opens the way to more discoveries,” says Eli Shukron, the archaeologist who discovered it. He admits: “We were lucky.”

Nadav Shragai..
Israel Hayom..
07 September '12..

During one of the most dramatic moments of the siege of Jerusalem some 2,700 years ago, Rabshakeh, the commander-in-chief of the army of Sanherib, king of Assyria, tries to convince the king of Jerusalem, Hezekiah, and its inhabitants to surrender. He gives a long speech in Hebrew so that his audience will understand what he says. He speaks in a threatening manner, mocks the power of God, Hezekiah and Egypt, describing them as a “staff made of a broken reed.” But at the same time, he entices, promising the beleaguered inhabitants that if they surrender, "then eat ye every man of his own vine, and every one of his fig tree, and drink ye every one the waters of his cistern."

Archaeologists in Jerusalem have been searching for the cisterns mentioned by Rabshakeh for many years, but never found them. While many cisterns and reservoirs from the Second Temple era have been found, no trace was found of their counterparts from the First Temple era – as if the earth had swallowed them.

This enigma is all the more powerful when we consider how much water Jerusalem, and the Temple in particular, needed during the First Temple era. The descriptions from the Book of Kings about the construction of the Temple by King Solomon speak of a “copper sea,” a large container of water made of copper and ten “basins” with a combined capacity of about 120,000 liters in today’s measurements.

Dr. Zvika Zuk, the archaeologist who made that calculation, estimated in one of his articles that the First Temple required several dozen cubic meters of water per day for cleaning, drinking, washing the blood of sacrificed animals, refilling the reservoirs and more. But from where did the water for the Temple come?

For many years, researchers believed that the Gihon spring was the main and almost exclusive source of water for ancient Jerusalem, and that both the inhabitants of the upper city and the Temple used its water. But there was one small problem with this theory: the relatively large distance of about 800 meters between the spring and the Temple Mount.

Professor Shmuel Avitzur once calculated that bringing one cubic meter of water to Jerusalem would have required 13 trips by donkey, since a donkey can carry about 75 liters of water. In order to fill a cistern of 100 cubic meters, 1,300 trips by donkey would have been necessary. However, since there were no archaeological finds in Jerusalem in general, or the Temple Mount in particular, that could attest to reservoirs and cisterns from the First Temple era, the theory that Jerusalem lived exclusively on water from the Gihon spring prevailed.

But all that changed just a few weeks ago. Like many major discoveries, this one came about through pure luck.

Unearthed in Jerusalem - 3,000 Year-Old Public Water Works

Green Prophet..
06 September '12..

A large rock-hewn water reservoir dating to the First Temple period was recently discovered in the archaeological excavations that are being conducted in Jerusalem. The excavation, during the course of which the reservoir was discovered, is part of an archaeological project to expose the entire drainage channel of Jerusalem dating to the Second Temple period.

The channel runs north along the City of David spur, from the Siloam Pool to a point beneath Robinson’s Arch. The route of the channel was fixed in the center of the main valley that extends from north to south the length of the ancient city, parallel to the Temple Mount.

In his description of Jerusalem in the Second Temple period, Josephus refers to the valley by its Greek name “Tyropoeon,” which scholars believe means “Valley of the Cheese-makers.” Another interpretation identifies the valley with the “Valley of the Decision,” mentioned in the Book of Joel.

It became apparent while excavating the channel that during the construction of this enormous engineering enterprise its builders had to remove earlier structures that were situated along the route of the channel and “pass through” existing rock-hewn installations that were located along it.

(+Video) Stern - Nadia Abu-El-Haj's Ignorance

Paula R. Stern..
A Soldier's Mother..
11 April '12..

A professor given tenure several years ago by Barnard College, despite a petition signed by thousands and many questions about her qualifications, maintains that the Jews do not necessarily have a well-documented history in the Holy Land and in fact, she claims, Israeli archaeologists were guiding their finds by their agenda...something one could easily say about Abu El-Haj.

In one review, University of Arizona Professor William Dever, the senior American archaeologist digging in the Middle East (cited in The New York Sun), called El-Haj’s scholarship “faulty, misleading and dangerous,” while Aren Maeir, the archaeologist heading the dig at Gath of the Philistines, deemed it “ludicrous.” Despite the protests, Columbia gave Abu El-Haj tenure - not something that surprised me from a place that welcome Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to speak.

So, every once in a while - actually, quite often, Israelis and visiting scientists and archaeologists discover more and more roots, facts on the ground, and truths of our ancient and eternal connection to this land. I thought of Nadia Abu El Haj when I saw this video. Nadia Abu El-Haj told a reporter, Jane Kramer of the New Yorker, that the next thing she expected was for me to want to have lunch with her - I"m not sure whether that shows her incredible self-centered ego or her very slim hold on reality - or both.

IMRA - Sound of Jerusalem Bell from Second Temple Period

Dr. Aaron Lerner
www.imra.org.il
25.7.11

This is the tiny golden bell which was lost in Jerusalem some 2,000 years ago during the Second Temple period found among ruins near the Old City. The bell, which is thought to have been an adornment which was sewn onto the garments of a senior official, was uncovered during excavation work on a drainage channel in the City of David, just south of the Old City walls. "It seems the bell was sewn on the garment worn by a high official in Jerusalem at the end of the Second Temple period," an IAA statement said.

This a recording of the bell provided by Udi Ragones, Ir David Foundation Spokesman


Uploaded by IMRANEWSVIDEO on Jul 25, 2011


Click here to read more.


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Meotti - UNESCO against the Jews

Giulio Meotti
Israel Opinion/Ynet
19 July '11

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4097506,00.html



Special: UN’s cultural body seems to be engaged in inquisition-like campaign against Israel

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) adopted a decision calling on Israel to immediately cease all archaeological works in the Old City of Jerusalem. In particular, UNESCO, one of the UN’s most prominent and influential agencies, attacked the renovation of the Mughrabi Bridge that links the Western Wall plaza and Temple Mount.

The decision, initiated and promoted by Arab states, was adopted by consensus of the Western members of the commission. Indeed, the vote is the latest anti-Jewish initiative launched by the UN office meant to promote culture, education and science around the world. In fact, UNESCO’s robber barons are sanctifying the current global campaign aimed liquidating the legitimacy of the Israeli regime.

In 2009, UNESCO designated Jerusalem as “capital of Arab culture,” working with Palestinian Authority officials and key Arab figures to protest against what they described as “the Israeli occupation of Holy Jerusalem.” Other cities granted the title over the years were Algiers, Damascus, Cairo, Tunis, Amman, Beirut and Khartoum.

The Arabs find it difficult to convincingly portray Israel as usurper of the land as long as the world believes there is a huge connection between the people of the Bible and the land of the Bible. UNESCO is denying this connection by depicting Jewish history in the Middle East as no more than an insignificant, brief sojourn by arrogant colonizers.

UNESCO appears to deny that the Jewish people has laid its roots in Israel more than 4,000 years ago, or that 1,000 years before Christ, King David made Jerusalem the Jewish city par excellence, never entirely abandoned even in times of deadly persecution.

The City of David in Jerusalem, a major target of UNESCO’s anti-Jewish fury, is now the hottest open archaeological site in the world, with biblical artifacts, ancient burial spots and royal seals. There, UNESCO is using archeology to bash Israel and treats Israeli archeologists as nationalistic martinets.

In recent years, UNESCO increased its collaboration with ISESCO, the cultural body of the Organization of the Islamic Conference. According to ISESCO’s propaganda, the Biblical story and the Jewish temples are only fiction, Jewish monuments are Islamic treasures stolen by the Zionists, and Israeli archeological works are criminal acts against Muslims.

Tobin - Digging for Jerusalem’s Jewish Roots

Jonathan S. Tobin
Commentary/Contentions
21 June '11

http://www.commentarymagazine.com/2011/06/21/digging-jerusalem%E2%80%99s-jewish-roots/

One of the consistent themes sounded by Palestinian political leaders and their official media is their contention that Jewish roots in Jerusalem and throughout the historic land of Israel is a myth. They think denying the reality of Jewish history authenticates their efforts to undermine the legitimacy of the modern-day state of Israel.

It is this disturbing trend that gives any new archeological finds in Jerusalem a political angle that is in many respects unfortunate. It is for that reason the solid scholarly work of archeologists in the city have often been attacked by Arabs and anti-Israel activists elsewhere. These activists care little about the truth but are primarily motivated by a desire to weave a fictitious historical narrative in which the Jewish presence in the country and Jerusalem is minimized if not altogether expunged.

It is in this light the unveiling of a new site showcasing the most complete excavations from the First Temple Period in Jerusalem ought to be celebrated. The site, which was inaugurated today in the Walls Around Jerusalem National Park, includes the area thought to be the “Water Gate” mentioned in the Bible. The site includes a watchtower, royal buildings and multiple mikvot, or ritual baths. It was discovered by the brilliant Israeli archeologist Dr. Eilat Mazar, who also has had significant finds in the City of David. It was announced the site will soon be open to the public as part of the Davidson Center Archeological Garden.

The significance of these finds ought not to be underestimated. If this is, as Mazar believes, the area of the Water Gate mentioned in the Book of Nehemiah, then what she has found are the remnants of the walls built by King Solomon. Indeed, some of the large clay pots that were unearthed were still blackened by the fires started by the Babylonians when they destroyed the Temple.

The excavations were made possible by a gift by New York philanthropists Daniel Mintz and Meredith Berkman, who have also supported Mazar’s excavations in the City of David, where she uncovered other amazing sites such as what may have been a royal palace dating to the era of David and Solomon.

All of this undermines the argument made not only by the Palestinians but also by some left-wing scholars that the Davidic monarchy never existed. While these findings have inestimable scholarly worth, they are also a standing rebuke to those who refer to parts of Israel’s capital as “traditionally Palestinian” or “Arab East Jerusalem.” And that is precisely why supporters of the Palestinians have attacked Mazar’s work.

Those who seek to destroy Israel understand denying the historic legacy of the Jewish presence in Jerusalem is integral to their efforts. But as Mazar has again proved, all you need to confirm Jerusalem’s Jewish roots is to start digging.

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Herod's Sewage Tunnel

Yaacov Lozowick
Yaacov Lozowick's Ruminations
24 April '11

http://yaacovlozowick.blogspot.com/2011/04/herods-sewage-tunnel.html

Imagine a sewage tunnel built more than 2,100 years ago, which could still be used almost a century later by rebels attempting to escape a besieged city, but being fished out one by one and killed. Imagine a contemporary book which describes this all, which is still a popular read 2,000 years later. Imagine that the city above continues its life, repeatedly being built, destroyed, built and destroyed, while no-one ever returns to the long-forgotten sewage tunnel, which is assumed to have been a legend or an exaggeration or the figment of someone's fervid imagination.

Now imagine a team of professional archeologists who accidentally stumble into the ancient tunnel, then spend a few years carefully cleaning it out, thus demonstrating that it's still there, in its entirety, and is large enough to walk through from end to end. Soon, they announce, perhaps even as soon as May 2011, it will be open to the public, and everyone will be able to walk though it.

In any normal place in the world, this would be a wonderful story, it would be favorably reported in the world's media, and would be celebrated at least as a minor wonder of the world.

Alas, there's a snag to the story. The archeologists are descendants of the original builders and their grandchildren the rebels. They speak the same language, and regard the ancient city as their capital, just as their forefathers did. Uh oh. Not good. Bad, as a matter of fact. Very bad. Pernicious. Destructive. Horrendous.

Haaretz has a long report on the matter, which explains why opening Herod's sewage tunnel is a Zionist conspiracy designed to undermine Palestinian homes and destroy truth, or something of the sort. Thankfully, Nir Hasson, the author, also reports on the counter arguments, so it's a balanced report and you can judge for yourself. Balanced, that is, in the crazy reality which regards Jews unearthing Jewish history as a colonial conspiracy.

I've been through the southern half of the tunnel, by the way. Once it's opened it will be an ideal place to tour on hot summer days, which Jerusalem has many of.

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Terra Incognita: The great archeology debate

A persistent discussion about the politicization of Israeli archeology.


Seth J. Frantzman
Terra Incognita/JPost
20 July '10

At a recent International Geography Conference in Tel Aviv, Deborah Cvikel of the University of Haifa’s Recanti Institute of Maritime Studies unveiled her latest work on 19th-century naval battles off Acre.

In the course of her study she had carried out groundbreaking research, alongside Dr. Ya’acov Kahanov, on a shipwreck inside the ancient harbor of Acre. It is postulated that this wreck may be related to the naval bombardments by the Egyptians in 1831 or British in 1840.

The unique research into maritime archeology being pioneered at the University Haifa is part of the larger interest archeologists inevitably express in the Holy Land and its long history. But since the 2007 dustup over the granting of tenure to Nadia Abu el-Haj at Barnard, there has been a persistent debate about the supposed politicization of Israeli archeology. The infamous case of Haj concerned the typical circle: Anti-Israel polemics passed off as scholarship, condemnation by pro- Israel supporters, accusations of freedom of speech being threatened and finally the legitimization of the anti-Israel polemic in the name of protecting free speech.

According to one interpretation, archeology in Israel is not a discipline or a science but rather purely political. The sites chosen to be excavated and illuminated, according to one critic, “have been selectively co-opted by the Israeli government in order to strengthen its claims to the land.” Yael Zerubavel of Rutgers noted in 1995 that “archeology thus becomes a national tool through which Israelis can recover their roots in the ancient past and the ancient homeland.”

Keith Whitelam’s pretentious 1997 The Invention of Ancient Israel: The Silencing of Palestinian History argues that Israel was “invented by scholars in the image of a European nation state; one that resembles the State of Israel created in 1948.” Terje Oestigaard of the University of Bergen claims in Political Archeology and Holy Nationalism that Israel’s interest in its history is akin to “the distortions and false claims made by the Nazi archeologists.” Comparing Israel to the Nazis is par for the course of scholarly anti-Israel hate speech. Disparaging Israel’s connection to the land has even spawned an entire school of archeology called the Copenhagen School, populated by such scholars as Niels Peter Lemche and Thomas Thompson.

Another critic is Knox College’s Danielle Steen Fatkin, author of National Building and Archeological Narrative in the West Bank (2002). A recipient of an Albright Institute fellowship (funded partly by the US National Endowment for the Humanities), she carried out research in Israel but her most recent work has been in Jordan. The same scholar who condemns Israel’s “national mythologizing run amok” waxes eloquent about how “developing a coherent national identity is vitally important not just for creating at least a fiction of Palestinian unity, but important also for the presentation of Palestinian needs to the international community.”

(Read full article)

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RE: Jerusalem Dig Yields Yet Another Historical Gem

Emanuelle Ottolenghi
Contentions/Commentary
12 July '10

Reporting on yet another remarkable archaeological finding in Jerusalem, Jonathan Tobin writes today that:

This matters because many influential archaeologists, as well as Palestinian propagandists, have dismissed Jewish ties to Jerusalem by claiming that the Kingdom of David mentioned in the Bible was an insignificant entity and that its capital in Jerusalem was nothing more than a village.

I could not agree more. But his sentence triggered a thought and a reminder of post-Zionist mirror-climbing about when the Palestinian nation was born. The exercise is, of course, aimed at disproving the argument that Palestinian national identity is largely a consequence, a response, and, therefore, a by-product of Zionism and Israel’s establishment. The argument suggests that part of the reason why Palestine never came to exist as a nation-state is because those for whom the nation-state was meant to be established did not see themselves as a distinct nation until much later in history – when it was too late.

Even if one takes the absurd claim that the birth date of Palestinian identity goes back to 1834 – as argued Joel Migdal and Baruch Kimmerling in their book, The Palestinian People: A History – the notion that “Jerusalem was nothing more than a village” would more aptly apply to Jerusalem at the time of the Palestinian nation’s “birth.”

(Read full post)

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Jerusalem Dig Yields Another Historical Gem

Jonathan Tobin
Contentions/Commentary
12 July '10

Does it matter whether Jerusalem was a major city 3,500 years ago? Surely, nothing that happened that long ago could mean much today, especially since the Israelite Kingdom of David and Solomon — from which Jewish claims date — did not come along until a few centuries later. But the recent find of a clay fragment at the site of the City of David from this long ago actually has a great deal of meaning for the debate over both the Davidic kingdom’s significance and the depth of Jewish ties to the holy city.

The fragment, found in the Ophel area, in a dig carried out by Dr. Eilat Mazar of the Hebrew University Institute of Archeology and funded by New York philanthropists Daniel Mintz and Meredith Berkman, is a small piece of what appears to have been a larger tablet. What makes it important is that it contains writing in ancient cuneiform symbols. This makes it the oldest written document ever found in Jerusalem. That alone is fascinating but what makes it truly significant is the high quality of the writing that seems to be the work of a highly skilled scribe who was probably part of a royal household. Analysis of the writing by Hebrew University experts shows that it may well have been part of a message sent from a king of Jerusalem to the pharaoh in Egypt.

This matters because many influential archaeologists, as well as Palestinian propagandists, have dismissed Jewish ties to Jerusalem by claiming that the Kingdom of David mentioned in the Bible was an insignificant entity and that its capital in Jerusalem was nothing more than a village. These people scoff at the notion that the effort to restore Jewish sovereignty to the area is based on historical precedent rather than biblical romance.

The lesson of this most recent find is that if Jerusalem were already an important walled city in the centuries before David, it is very difficult to argue that it was a backwater only when the Jews took over, some 3,000 years ago. Since anti-Zionists wish to claim that King David and his kingdom never really existed and that the great city from which he ruled it is a myth, this evidence of the city’s significance even before his time is more proof of the falsity of anti-Israel historical polemics.

(Read full post)

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Oldest written document ever found in J'lem

Archeologists unearth 14th century BCE fragment.


Ben Hartman
JPost
12 July '10

Hebrew University excavations recently unearthed a clay fragment dating back to the 14th century BCE, said to be the oldest written document ever found in Jerusalem.

The tiny fragment is only 2 cm. by 2.8 cm. in surface area and 1 cm. thick and appears to have once been part of a larger tablet. Researchers say the ancient fragment testifies to Jerusalem’s importance as a major city late in the Bronze Age, long before it was conquered by King David.

The minuscule fragment contains Akkadian words written in ancient cuneiform symbols. Researchers say that while the symbols appear to be insignificant, containing simply the words “you,” “you were,” “them,” “to do,” and “later,” the high quality of the writing indicates that it was written by a highly skilled scribe. Such a revelation would mean that the piece was likely written for tablets that were part of a royal household.

The find was uncovered in a fill taken from the Ophel area, which lies between the Old City’s southern wall and the City of David. The Ophel digs are being carried out by Dr. Eilat Mazar of the Hebrew University Institute of Archeology, through funding from US donors Daniel Mintz and Meredith Berkman of New York.

According to Mazar, the fragment was discovered over a month and a half ago during wet sifting of the Ophel excavations, but was only released to the press this week because researchers wanted to wait until analysis of the piece was complete so as to be absolutely certain of the details of the find.

(Read full story)

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First Person: Archaeological Politics—Why Is Israel Different?

Hershel Shanks
BAR
July/August '10

Not long ago, a news report landed on my desk describing an Egyptian archaeological project. The Egyptians were going to excavate the 1.7-mile avenue of the sphinxes that, almost 3,500 years ago, linked the grand temples of Luxor and Karnak. More than 1,350 sphinxes lined this glorious, but now buried, path.

There was only one problem with the project: 2,000 people now lived on the buried path. They would have to be dispossessed and relocated. The Egyptians allocated half of the project budget of 60 million Egyptian pounds to compensate these families who will be moved.

Another Egyptian archaeological project would require the demolition of the entire village of Gurna, located near the Valley of the Kings. The village was sitting over ancient tombs. Nearly 3,200 homes would have to be demolished. The government built new homes for the villagers about 2 miles away. Some villagers complained that the new houses weren’t big enough, but that was it. The mention of the dispossessed Egyptian settlers was only an incidental part of the article, which was really about the planned projects.

All nations, including the United States, take pride in their history. We, too, want to explore our past, even when it’s not something to be proud of, like our country’s history of slavery.

If we discovered a house in private hands where Lincoln had lived for a short time, you may be sure that the government would acquire it by purchase or eminent domain and make it into a national monument and tourist attraction. If it were taken by eminent domain (that is, by government edict), our constitution provides that the owner must be paid “just compensation.”

This is what happens in the United States, and this is what appears to be happening in Egypt—and all over the world.

In every country except one.

The City of David is a small hillock of 10 or 12 acres south of the walled Old City of Jerusalem. It was here that the city was confined from the Early Bronze Age (more than 4,000 years ago) until about 700 B.C. Then the city expanded to adjacent areas, but the City of David, as it is known, remained a critical part of the city.

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Jerusalem on the Media Frontline

The Economist misrepresents a municipal plan to improve the lives of Jerusalem's Arab residents.


Honest Reporting
Media Critique
09 March '10

Perhaps no other issue generates such emotion and conflict as the status of Jerusalem. We do not intend to prejudge the outcome of any discussions that may or may not eventually take place between the various interested parties that have a stake in the holy city.

However, many media outlets have done precisely that - drawing upon a one-sided and selective narrative that seeks to delegitimize Jewish rights in Jerusalem. Only recently, HonestReporting critiqued a biased BBC Panorama documentary focusing on tensions in the area of eastern Jerusalem adjacent to the Old City.

Indeed, with a settlement freeze on the West Bank excluding the eastern part of Jerualem, the media's new frontline has moved to Israel's capital city. The media have, in many cases, played into the hands of those on the Palestinian side who need little excuse to stoke existing tensions or create new ones.

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Whose Jerusalem? Latest Discovery Makes Plain Ancient Jewish Ties

Jonathan Tobin
Contentions/Commentary
22 February '10

The greatest threat to the hopes of those who think parts of Jerusalem should be off-limits to Jews comes not when Jewish-owned buildings go up in the city, but rather when Jews start digging into the ground of East Jerusalem. Because the more the history of the city is uncovered, the less credible becomes the charge that Jews are alien colonists in what the media sometimes wrongly refer to as “traditionally Palestinian” or “Arab” Jerusalem.

That’s the upshot from the release of an amazing archeological dig conducted just outside Jerusalem’s Old City. The excavations conducted by archeologist Eilat Mazar in the Ophel area revealed a section of an ancient city wall of Jerusalem. According to the press release from the Hebrew University, under whose auspices the project was carried out, the dig uncovered the wall as well as an inner gatehouse for entry into the royal quarter of the ancient city and an additional royal structure adjacent to the gatehouse as well as a corner tower. While ancient buildings are not uncommon in the city, the significance of this discovery is the fact that these edifices can be dated to the 10th century before the Common Era — the time of King Solomon, credited by the Bible for the construction of the ancient Temple in Jerusalem. Pottery found at the lowest levels of the dig is dated to this era.

Even more telling is the fact that bullae — seal impressions — with Hebrew names were found, as well as seal impressions on jar handles inscribed with the words “to the king,” which means they were employed by the Israelite state in that time. Inscriptions on the jars, which Mazar says are the largest ever found in Jerusalem, showed them to be the property of a royal official.

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Related: Hebrew U. archaeologist discovers Jerusalem city wall possibly built by King Solomon
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Hebrew U. archaeologist discovers Jerusalem city wall possibly built by King Solomon

The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
News release
IMRA
22 February '10

Jerusalem, February 22, 2010 - A section of an ancient city wall of Jerusalem from the tenth century B.C.E. - possibly built by King Solomon -- has been revealed in archaeological excavations directed by Dr. Eilat Mazar and conducted under the auspices of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

The section of the city wall revealed, 70 meters long and six meters high, is located in the area known as the Ophel, between the City of David and the southern wall of the Temple Mount.

Uncovered in the city wall complex are: an inner gatehouse for access into the royal quarter of the city, a royal structure adjacent to the gatehouse, and a corner tower that overlooks a substantial section of the adjacent Kidron valley.



The excavations in the Ophel area were carried out over a three-month period with funding provided by Daniel Mintz and Meredith Berkman, a New York couple interested in Biblical Archeology. The funding supports both completion of the archaeological excavations and processing and analysis of the finds as well as conservation work and preparation of the site for viewing by the public within the Ophel Archaeological Park and the national park around the walls of Jerusalem.

The excavations were carried out in cooperation with the Israel Antiquities Authority, the Israel Nature and Parks Authority, and the Company for the Development of East Jerusalem. Archaeology students from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem as well as volunteer students from the Herbert W. Armstrong College in Edmond, Oklahoma, and hired workers all participated in the excavation work.

"The city wall that has been uncovered testifies to a ruling presence. Its strength and form of construction indicate a high level of engineering", Mazar said. The city wall is at the eastern end of the Ophel area in a high, strategic location atop the western slop of the Kidron valley.

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Time's McGirk Sides With Opponents of Jerusalem Archeology

Ricki Hollander
CAMERA
10 February '10

Tim McGirk, Time Magazine's Jerusalem bureau chief, is notorious for his lack of impartiality on the Arab-Israeli conflict. Time and again, he has departed from the code of journalistic ethics by failing to “distinguish between advocacy and news reporting,” and by misleading readers with false information. In a Feb. 8, 2010 article entitled “Archaeology in Jerusalem: Digging Up Trouble,” McGirk once again replaces objective reporting with advocacy journalism, this time promoting opponents of archeological excavations in the City of David.

Jerusalem's past, present and future is a subject of controversy that arouses passionate opinion and positions on both sides. One of the main obstacles to previous peace‑making efforts has been the issue of dividing Jerusalem and control over its holy sites. Muslim denial of Judaism's historical and religious ties to Jerusalem, the Waqf's illegal construction on the Temple Mount, and the violent response to Jewish archeological digs have long stymied Arab-Israeli peace negotiations. (See "The Battle Over Jerusalem and the Temple Mount".) While the strongest opposition to the archeological excavations taking place in Jerusalem comes from Palestinian and Muslim leaders who for political reasons deny a Jewish historic bond to the city's holy sites, opposition has also come from pro‑Palestinian activists who oppose Israeli sovereignty in Jerusalem's holy basin and from revisionist or minimalist archeologists who reject the Bible as a guide to the history of ancient Israel.

Support for the archeological studies come not only from right‑wing Jewish nationalists but from archeologists, historians and scholars throughout the world who believe that the discoveries support biblical accounts of a united Davidian monarchy.

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