Avraham Faust on David’s Palace

Have Eilat Mazar’s Archaeology Methods Truly Revealed the Royal Abode in Jerusalem?

Eilat Mazar’s excavation and archaeology methods are beyond reproach, but her recent claim to have discovered King David’s palace at her Jerusalem dig site has met with harsh criticism from other scholars in the field. In the September/October 2012 issue of Biblical Archaeology Review, senior archaeologist Avraham Faust reviews the evidence to show why he agrees—and disagrees—with her theory.

Although Hebrew University archaeologist Eilat Mazar has received criticism from some about her claim to have discovered King David’s Palace on the Jerusalem ridge known as the City of David—the most ancient part of the city—no one questions the quality of her archaeology methods of excavation. Now Avraham Faust, a senior archaeologist at Bar-Ilan University, reviews Eilat Mazar’s archaeology, methods and conclusions about the so-called Large Stone Structure that she revealed (above) and explains why he agrees—and disagrees—with her theory. (Photo: Courtesy Eilat Mazar)

The narrow ridge, still known as the City of David, lies south of Jerusalem’s Temple Mount. It is the location of the most ancient settlement of Jerusalem. As Avraham Faust explains, Mazar’s decision to dig in the City of David was informed by the Biblical text and by the excavations that preceded hers. Based on earlier finds, Mazar thought she knew where David’s palace should be located. When she uncovered the Large Stone Structure from the Iron Age, she proposed it to be built by King David as his palace.

Eilat Mazar excavated a complex structure that includes a massive eastern wall. Within this Large Stone Structure, as Mazar named it, were layers of Iron Age I remains, showing that it must have been built no later than the Iron Age I (c. 1200–1000/950 B.C.E.). Even so, Mazar identified the building as likely having been the palace King David built for himself in the early Iron Age IIa. Avraham Faust, however, argues that the archaeological evidence indicates a construction date before David’s time. According to Faust, Mazar’s archaeology methods for dating the structure are good, and David may have used the structure as his palace, but Mazar fudges the dates a bit to say that King David built it.

Inscription reveals ancient Jewish building in Cologne

Archaeologists in Cologne, Germany have uncovered a fascinating 13th-century Hebrew inscription on a lintel stone in the basement of a home near the city’s ancient synagogue. The Hebrew inscription reads “This is the window through which the feces are to be taken out.”

 The inscription was discovered in December 2011 on the lintel above a walled-up window in the cellar of Lyvermann House, which was built in about 1266 and belonged to a wealthy Jewish family that lived right near the synagogue. Behind the wall was a cesspool, six meters deep.

 According to Prof. David Assaf of Tel Aviv University’s Jewish History Department, “Such a serious-amusing inscription has never been found anywhere, not before and not since.”

Oldest Hebrew Inscription Possibly Found

 

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HIRBET QEIYAFA, Israel — An Israeli archaeologist digging at a hilltop south of Jerusalem believes a ceramic shard found in the ruins of an ancient town bears the oldest Hebrew inscription ever discovered, a find that could provide an important glimpse into the culture and language of the Holy Land at the time of the Bible.

The five lines of faded characters written 3,000 years ago, and the ruins of the fortified settlement where they were found, are indications that a powerful Israelite kingdom existed at the time of the Old Testament's King David, says Yossi Garfinkel, the Hebrew University archaeologist in charge of the new dig at Hirbet Qeiyafa.

Other scholars are hesitant to embrace Garfinkel's interpretation of the finds, made public on Thursday.

The discoveries are already being wielded in a vigorous and ongoing argument over whether the Bible's account of events and geography is meant to be taken literally.

Hirbet Qeiyafa sits near the modern Israeli city of Beit Shemesh in the Judean foothills, an area that was once the frontier between the hill-dwelling Israelites and their enemies, the coastal Philistines.

A teenage volunteer found the curved pottery shard, 6 inches by 6 inches (15 centimeters by 15 centimeters), in July near the stairs and stone washtub of an excavated home.

It was later discovered to bear five lines of characters known as proto-Canaanite, a precursor of the Hebrew alphabet.

Carbon-14 analysis of burnt olive pits found in the same layer of the site dated them to between 1,000 and 975 B.C., the same time as the Biblical golden age of David's rule in Jerusalem.

Scholars have identified other, smaller Hebrew fragments from the 10th century B.C., but the script, which Garfinkel suggests might be part of a letter, predates the next significant Hebrew inscription by between 100 and 200 years.

History's best-known Hebrew texts, the Dead Sea scrolls, were penned on parchment beginning 850 years later.

The shard is now kept in a university safe while philologists translate it, a task expected to take months.

But several words have already been tentatively identified, including ones meaning "judge," "slave" and "king."

The Israelites were not the only ones using proto-Canaanite characters, and other scholars suggest it is difficult — perhaps impossible — to conclude the text is Hebrew and not a related tongue spoken in the area at the time.

Garfinkel bases his identification on a three-letter verb from the inscription meaning "to do," a word he said existed only in Hebrew.

"That leads us to believe that this is Hebrew, and that this is the oldest Hebrew inscription that has been found," he said.

Other prominent Biblical archaeologists warned against jumping to conclusions.

Hebrew University archaeologist Amihai Mazar said the inscription was "very important," as it is the longest proto-Canaanite text ever found. But he suggested that calling the text Hebrew might be going too far.

"It's proto-Canaanite," he said. "The differentiation between the scripts, and between the languages themselves in that period, remains unclear."

Some scholars and archeologists argue that the Bible's account of David's time inflates his importance and that of his kingdom, and is essentially myth, perhaps rooted in a shred of fact.

But if Garfinkel's claim is borne out, it would bolster the case for the Bible's accuracy by indicating the Israelites could record events as they happened, transmitting the history that was later written down in the Old Testament several hundred years later.

It also would mean that the settlement — a fortified town with a 30-foot-wide (10-meter-wide) monumental gate, a central fortress and a wall running 770 yards (700 meters) in circumference — was probably inhabited by Israelites.

The finds have not yet established who the residents were, says Aren Maier, a Bar Ilan University archaeologist who is digging at nearby Gath.

It will become more clear if, for example, evidence of the local diet is found, he said: Excavations have shown that Philistines ate dogs and pigs, while Israelites did not.

The nature of the ceramic shards found at the site suggest residents might have been neither Israelites nor Philistines but members of a third, forgotten people, he said.

If the inscription is Hebrew, it would indicate a connection to the Israelites and make the text "one of the most important texts, without a doubt, in the corpus of Hebrew inscriptions," Maier said.

But it has great importance whatever the language turns out to be, he added.

Saar Ganor, an Israel Antiquities Authority ranger, noticed the unusual scale of the walls while patrolling the area in 2003.

Three years later he interested Garfinkel, and after a preliminary dig they began work in earnest this summer. They have excavated only 4 percent of the six-acre settlement so far.

Archaeology has turned up only scant finds from David's time in the early 10th century B.C., leading some scholars to suggest his kingdom may have been little more than a small chiefdom or that he might not have existed at all.

Garfinkel believes building fortifications like those at Hirbet Qeiyafa could not have been a local initiative: The walls would have required moving 200,000 tons of stone, a task too big for the 500 or so people who lived there. Instead, it would have required an organized kingdom like the one the Bible says David ruled.

Modern Zionism has traditionally seen archaeology as a way of strengthening the Jewish claim to Israel and regarded David's kingdom as the glorious ancestor of the new Jewish state. So finding evidence of his rule has importance beyond its interest to scholars.

The dig is partially funded by Foundation Stone, a Jewish educational organization, which hopes to bring volunteers to work there as a way of teaching them a national and historical lesson.

"When I stand here, I understand that I'm on the front lines of the battle between the Israelites and the Philistines," said Rabbi Barnea Levi Selavan, the group's director. "I open my Bible and read about David and Goliath, and I understand that I'm in the Biblical context."

While the site could be useful to scholars, archaeologist Israel Finkelstein of Tel Aviv University urged adhering to the strict boundaries of science.

Finkelstein, who has not visited the dig but attended a presentation of the findings, warned against what he said was a "revival in the belief that what's written in the Bible is accurate like a newspaper."

That style of archaeology was favored by 19th century European diggers who trolled the Holy Land for physical traces of Biblical stories, their motivation and methods more romantic than scientific.

"This can be seen as part of this phenomenon," Finkelstein said.

The Inauguration of the First Temple Period Ophel City Walls Site and the Opening of the Exhibit of the Oldest Written Document from Jerusalem

Upon completion of the excavation and conservation work at the Ophel City Wall site, visitors will now be able to touch the stones and walls whose construction tells the history of Jerusalem throughout the ages. It is now possible to walk comfortably through the built remains, in places that were previously closed to the public, to sense their splendor and learn about the history of the region by the signage and the different means of presentation and illustration.   At the beginning of 2010 archaeologist Dr. Eilat Mazar completed exposing the Ophel fortification complex inJerusalem. Immediately thereafter, conservation work commenced and the site was made accessible to the public. The conservation work was implemented by the Israel Antiquities Authority Conservation Department and lasted about six months.   The architecture at the site that was exposed includes an impressive building thought to be a gate house, a royal edifice, a section of a tower and the city wall itself. Dr. Mazar suggests identifying the buildings as part of the complex of fortifications that King Solomon constructed in Jerusalem: “…until he had made an end of building his own house, and the house of the Lord, and the wall of Jerusalem round about” (1 Kings 3:1). In addition to the fortifications of theFirstTemple period, sections of the Byzantine city wall and two of its towers were exposed. This wall was built at the initiative of the Byzantine empress Eudocia in the fifth century CE. In addition to the complex of fortifications, the excavation of two rooms from the Second Temple period (first century CE) was completed, which were preserved to a height of two stories.

The highlight of the excavations is the complete exposure of the gate house. The plan of this impressive building includes four rooms of identical size, arranged on both sides of a broad corridor paved with crushed limestone. The plan of the gate house is characteristic of the First Temple period (tenth-sixth centuries BCE) and is similar to contemporaneous gates that were revealed at Megiddo, Be‘er Sheva’ and Ashdod. The excavator, Eilat Mazar, suggests identifying the gate house here withthe ‘water gate’ mentioned in the Bible: “…and the temple servants living on Ophel repaired to a point opposite the Water Gate on the east and the projecting tower” (Nehemiah 3:26). The ground floor of a large building that was destroyed in a fierce conflagration can be seen east of the gate. Mazar suggests that this structure was destroyed by the Babylonian conquest of the city in 586 BCE. Twelve very large, clay store jars (pithoi), which probably contained wine or oil, were discovered on the floor of the building. Engraved on the shoulder of one of these pithoi is the Hebrew inscription “לשר האו...”. The inscription indicates that this pithos belonged to one of the kingdom’s ministers, perhaps the overseer of the bakers.

During the course of the excavation the earliest written document to be exposed to date in Jerusalemwas discovered. This unique find, which is of extraordinary importance to the history of the city, will now be on permanent display to the public in the DavidsonCenter. This is a very small fragment of a clay tablet engraved in Akkadian cuneiform script, which was the lingua franca of the time. Among the very skillfully written words that can be read are the words: “you were”, “later”, “to do” and “they”.   The tablet and the writing are typical of the tablets that were used in antiquity throughoutMesopotamia for international correspondence.    Analyses of the writing and the clay used to produce the tablet show that the document originated in the Jerusalem region. It seems that it is a copy of a letter that the king of Jerusalem at the time, Abdi-Heba,sent to the king of Egypt. It was customary that a copy of this correspondence would be kept in the archives of the city Salem, which was Jerusalem in that period. The fragment of the tablet constitutes credible evidence of the status of Jerusalem as an important royal city in Canaan, which was administered as a city-state under the auspices of the pharaonic Egypt kingdom.

Spectacular Gold and Silver Treasure

A spectacular and extraordinary 2,000 year old gold and silver hoard was uncovered in an archaeological excavation conducted by the Israel Antiquities Authority in the  Qiryat Gat Region. The treasure trove, comprising some 140 gold and silver coins as well as gold jewelry, was probably hidden by a wealthy woman at a time of impending danger during the Bar Kokhba Revolt (132 - 135 CE).  

During the excavation, remains of a building dating to the Roman and Byzantine periods were exposed. A pit that was dug and refilled in antiquity was discerned in the building's courtyard. To the archaeologist's surprise, a spectacular treasure hoard of exquisite quality was discovered inside the pit.  The treasure was originally wrapped in a cloth fabric of which only several fragments remained on the artifacts. 

According to the Israel Antiquities Authority Excavation Director archaeologist Emil Aladjem, "The magnificent hoard includes gold jewelry, among them an earring crafted by a jeweler in the shape of a flower and a ring with a precious stone on which there is a seal of a winged-goddess, two sticks of silver that were probably kohl sticks, as well as some 140 gold and silver coins. The coins that were discovered date to the reigns of the Roman emperors Nero, Nerva and Trajan who ruled the Roman Empire from 54-117 CE. 

The coins are adorned with the images of the emperors and on their reverse are cultic portrayals of the emperor, symbols of the brotherhood of warriors and mythological gods such as Jupiter seated on a throne, or Jupiter grasping a lightning bolt in his hand."  

Sa'ar Ganor, District Archaeologist of Ashkelon and the Western Negev for the Israel Antiquities Authority adds,  "The composition of the numismatic artifacts and their quality are consistent with treasure troves that were previously attributed to the time of the Bar Kokhba Revolt. During the uprising, between 132-135 CE, the Jews under Roman rule would re-strike coins of the emperor Trajan with symbols of the revolt. This hoard includes silver and gold coins of different denominations, most of which date to the reign of the emperor Trajan. This is probably an emergency cache that was concealed at the time of impending danger by a wealthy woman who wrapped her jewelry and money in a cloth and hid them deep in the ground prior to or during the Bar Kokhba Revolt. It is now clear that the owner of the hoard never returned to claim it."

The treasure hoard was removed from the field and transferred for treatment to the laboratories of the Israel Antiquities Authority in Jerusalem. The jewelry objects will become part of our Jewelry collection in the Brandt-Lewis Family National Center for Ancient Jewelry, and the coins will become part of the Saul Fox National Coin Center, in the Schottenstein National Campus for the Archaeology of Israel  under construction in Jerusalem.

Dead Sea Scrolls Digital Library

Ancient Tunnel Discovered by Jerusalem's Old City

OLDEST HEBREW TEXT FOUND!

Israel's National Treasures

Archaeologists Unearth Oldest Hebrew Text

Israeli archaeologists claim to have unearthed the oldest Hebrew text ever found. Discovered while excavating a fortress city, apparently it dates back from the 10th century B.C. and refers to the Bible when King David slew Goliath. Here's more on the story. STORY: Archaeologists uncover Israel's most foregone past near the ancient battlefield in the Valley of Elah. It is now home to wineries and a satellite station. The professor of archaeology at the Hebrew University led the excavations. [Yosef Garfinkel, Archaeology Professor]: "This inscription...is the oldest Hebrew inscription in the world. It's pre-dated the Dead Sea Scrolls by 1,000 years." Experts have not been able to decipher the full text as yet, but several words, including "judge", "slave" and "king," were identified. They hope the text will shed light on how alphabetic scripts developed. [Yosef Garfinkel, Archaeology Professor]: "It is written in Proto-Canaanite script which is the father and mother of all the alphabetic script in the world, the Greek, the Latin, the Hebrew, the Phoenician, the Aramein (Aramaic), all the alphabet in the world derived from this script that appears here on this specific piece of pottery." Carbon dating of artifacts found at the site indicate the Hebrew inscription was written about 10th century B.C. This is a time when scholars believe King David ruled Jerusalem and ancient Israel. [Yosef Garfinkel, Archaeology Professor]: "This inscription was found in a site... located on the border between Judah and the Philistine. It was a fortified city from the time of King David, about 3,000 years ago." Garfinkel says the recent findings could have wider repercussions over the future of Jerusalem. [Yosef Garfunkel, Archaeology Professor]: "Currently there is a heated debate about the historical value of the Bible-if we have historical information, or it's only theological and literary composed hundreds of years later. Our site clearly proves that already in the early 10th century B.C. there was a kingdom in Judea and that King David existed as a king and that he built fortified cities." Modern-day Israel often mentions a biblical connection through King David to Jerusalem in supporting its claim to all of the city as its "eternal and indivisible capital." For the Palestinians, however, the long-standing Arab population in Jerusalem takes over any biblical claims. They want the eastern part of the city to be the capital of the state they hope to establish in the West bank and Gaza trip.

Beth Shean in the Bible and Archaeology

The story of the death of King Saul as told by archaeology and the Bible

The imposing tell of Beth Shean. In the Bible the city plays an important role following the death of King Saul and as a major Israelite administrative center. Excavations over the past century have revealed what archaeology (and the Bible) can—and can’t—tell us about the site’s history. Photo by Gaby Laron, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

The most famous episode featuring Beth Shean in the Bible follows the death of King Saul on Mt. Gilboa:

The Philistines came to strip the slain, and they found Saul and his three sons lying on Mt. Gilboa. They cut off his head and stripped him of his armor … They placed his armor in the temple of Ashtaroth, and they impaled his body on the wall of Beth Shean. When the men of Jabesh-Gilead heard about it—what the Philistines had done to Saul—all their stalwart men set out and marched all night. They removed the bodies of Saul and his sons from the wall of Beth Shean and came to Jabesh and burned them there. Then they took the bones and buried them under the tamarisk tree in Jabesh, and they fasted for seven days (1 Samuel 31:8–13; cf. 1 Chronicles 10:8–12).

Archaeology seeks to uncover an even broader picture of a site’s past. In the Bible, Beth Shean is a major administrative center in Solomon’s kingdom, but excavations show that the site was an important one long before (and after) the kings of Israel reigned over it. Even so, can archaeology and the Bible corroborate the same historical event?

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As the point where three of the world’s major religions converge, Israel’s history is one of the richest and most complex in the world. Sift through the archaeology and history of this ancient land in the free eBook  An Israel Arcaeological Journey, and get a view of these significant Biblical sites through an archaeologist’s lens.

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Multiple excavations at Beth Shean in the past century have revealed a 6,000-year history of settlement at the site. Located near the intersection of two well-traveled ancient routes, Beth Shean proved to have important strategic value as early as the fifth millennium B.C.E., when it was first settled. Civilizations rose and fell at the site throughout the Chalcolithic period and Bronze Age. Some of the most impressive finds at Beth Shean came from the Late Bronze Age, when Egyptian pharaohs ruled over much of Canaan and used Beth Shean as a crucial administrative center to rule over its vassal kingdoms.

Unfortunately, due in part to later Roman and Byzantine construction at the base of the mound, excavators have not yet revealed any portion of the Beth Shean city wall from the 11th century B.C.E., when the Biblical story about King Saul’s death most likely occurred. And although the city was certainly occupied at this time, there is no evidence of a Philistine presence at the site then. So archaeology has not confirmed the Bible’s stories, but it has shed light on an even richer past at Beth Shean.

The Tower of David

By Jacqueline Schaalje

The Citadel of Jerusalem is better known as the Tower of David. Nowadays the fort is distinguished by its Islamic towers and entrance porch, but the Citadel's history goes back way before that. The Jewish historian Josephus first called the fortress the "Citadel of King David." The name "David's Tower" now refers to the minaret on the South side. To make things confusing the term "David's Tower" used to be reserved in the past for the north-east tower, whose origin is Herodian.

The oldest remains of a city wall and stronghold on the site, although not visible to current visitors, lies buried in the bedrock of the underlying hill. They date back to the monarchic period in Israel. King Hezekiah (end of 8th Century BCE) built a wall and towers after the Assyrian invasion of Judah (2 Chronicles 32:5). The wall was 7 meters wide, and constructed of large boulders. This giant wall was damaged during the Babylonian victory over Jerusalem in 587/6 BCE. In subsequent centuries the city shrunk back to the city of David on the eastern hill; consequently there was no need for a defence on the western hill.

The situation changed during the Hasmonean period. The city grew and extended to the western hill again. But although the Hasmonean kings already brought this part of the city inside the walls in the late second Century BCE, it was probably Herod who used the site for the first time to build a fort. Herod also erected his famous palace, which stretched to the south of the modern bastion. According to Josephus, Herod's palace was "wondrous beyond words." The palace was enormous and remains have been found where the Armenian garden is presently situated, which borders the south city wall.

The location was very suitable for a fort, as it was on the top of a hill, and according to Josephus the hill possessed an additional crest. Herod constructed 3 imposing towers to defend the wall, bastion and palace. They were called after his wife Mariamne, his friend Hippicus and his brother Phasael. It is the last tower which is still standing (the upper part of the tower is Islamic).

The palace and citadel remained a site of importance during the history of Israel. When the Romans assumed direct control over Palestine in 6 CE the Roman Procurator (governor) resided in the Herodian palace. According to the New Testament Jesus was judged here. Jewish "rebels" were summoned before the Roman ruler and were scourged and then crucified (as told in Josephus' War). The cruelty was one of the causes of the First Jewish War. In 66 CE Jewish rebels attacked and burnt the palace. According to Josephus "they dug a mine from a great distance and made it totter (War, 2:435)". Destruction layers coming from the attack were found in archaeological remains in the south of the courtyard, where once one of Herod's towers must have stood.

Four years later, the Roman general Titus conquered the city, burnt the Temple, and garrisoned his troops beside the remains of the destroyed palace. The Herodian towers were left standing. The Roman tenth legion camped on the site of Herod's old palace for 200 years.

The site of the fortress was named after the tower of David by the Byzantines, who thought Jerusalem's Western hill was Mount Zion, which was incorrectly identified with the city of David. The citadel was only reconstructed in its full glory in later centuries, exactly when is not known. During the early Arab period the Fatimids lost the citadel and Jerusalem to the Crusaders. The Crusader kings made the fortress their residence, and extended it further to the west. After the defeat of the Crusaders against the Arabic Saladin, the latter took seat in the citadel.

In subsequent centuries the Citadel was destroyed and built up many times. The Mamluk sultan Muhammad constructed the final form of the fortress in the 14th Century CE. He levelled the old city wall which until this time had run straight through the fortress. This division can easily be seen today, especially from a view from one of the towers. The old Hasmonean wall, which was strengthened by Herod and later rulers, runs north-east to south-west through the inner archaeological garden.

During the Mamluk period Jerusalem became neglected, and the Citadel was barely kept. After the Ottoman victory the sultan Suliman the Magnificent (16th Century), who also built the modern city walls, built the monumental entrance to the fortress, and the platform for cannon along the western wall. The Ottoman troops were stationed inside the city walls on the south side of the fortress (the location of Herod's palace). The remains of the Turkish camp are still visible at the base of the wall.

The minaret of the Citadel was built by Muhammad Pasha in the middle of the seventeenth Century. The mosque beside it was repaired by Suliman the Magnificent and was built on top of a Crusader hall. From the roof of the mosque the above-mentioned Turkish barracks can be seen against the wall.

After the city became once again Jewish, in the 20th Century, for the first time in its history the Citadel was not used anymore for strategic purposes. After archaeological study it was converted into a museum. The exhibition about the history of Jerusalem could not be on a more appropriate place, as the citadel was at once part and the highlight of the history of the city.

To make sense of the remains in the archaeological garden inside the courtyard of the fortress, it is a good idea to first study the exhibitions and film about Jerusalem inside the towers and the former mosque.

Also enlightening is a climb to the towers and ramps in order to look down at the archaeological garden. Turning one's gaze outside results in a magnificent view of the old city. At night this is very impressive: Jerusalem's monuments, including the Citadel itself, are placed in floodlights.

From the north-west tower, which looks down on Jaffa Gate, one looks at the medieval moat, which was filled in the late 19th Century. This tower also provides the best view on the excavations in the courtyard.

There are several ways to reach the courtyard, but through the main entrance is probably the most usual one. This is reached after passing the ornamental gate and the bridge. Both are from the time of Suliman the Magnificent, as Arabic inscriptions indicate.

It is also possible to pass under the bridge, by taking a flight of stairs beside the remains of a Byzantine wall. Following these one enters into the moat. Further south of the bridge used to be a quarry. Another flight of steps leads to a rock-cut water channel. Coins which were found in the plaster date it to the Hasmonean period.

By ascending again one comes through the main entrance, built by the Crusaders but restored by the Mamluks in the 14th Century. The main entrance room is in L-shape: this is so as to slow down possible attackers to the fortress. Original Crusader features are the stone benches in the guardroom and slits for the portcullis. From the hexagonal room the courtyard can be reached.

The curved Hasmonean wall, still reaching an impressive height of about 7 meters and 4 meters thick, divides the courtyard into two parts. This is the First Wall, as described by Josephus. Remains are traced also outside of the Citadel. To the south it runs beneath the present city wall where in ancient times it would have connected to the wall round the city of David. To the east traces of the First Wall are found in the Jewish Quarter; it stretched to the Temple Mount. Houses were built against the inner face of the wall; one of the entrances is still visible. Two towers were also built.

Herod thickened the Hasmonean wall, and added his three towers, of which only the Phasael tower is left, as described above. The Herodian part of the tower still measures 20 meters. The towers were built on an artificial platform to make them more imposing. The platform was made by intersecting walls which were lain over the Hasmonean houses beside the old wall, and the space in between was filled with earth filling. The existing Hasmonean towers were thickened, changed and extended. All of this construction, except for the Herodian new towers, was destroyed during the First Jewish War.

Not much has been found of the long Roman occupation of the site. In the Byzantine period a new wall was built which extended northwards from the Herodian tower; some steps are still visible. The new wall enclosed the old city on the north for the first time; the current northern city wall still follows the same course. The Byzantines also strengthened the existing Hasmonean/Herodian wall.

The Arab occupation after 638 brought significant changes. In following centuries a new round tower was erected, which may be located in the south-eastern corner of the courtyard. Probably this tower stood at the corner of a new wall, which ran north and south. If we assume that the Arabs left the Hasmonean/Herodian wall as their western limit, the outlines of the Arab fort become clear. This was the fortress that fell to the Crusaders in 1099.

The Crusaders clearly found the exsisting fortress too small to incorporate their royal court. They devised an imposing bastion and palace. Again the Herodian tower was left in place, which surely is a sign of its enduring quality. Also they strengthened again the old towers and the Herodian western wall, by adding a new wall to the west of it. Under the mosque in the south-west corner of the courtyard lies a Crusader chamber, which is reached by two medieval tunnels. One of the tunnels is entered from the courtyard.

The current outer walls and new towers in the north-west and south-east corners are from the later Arabic period. Although exact dates are unknown, inscriptions which were found at the main entrance, date its first construction to the time of sultan Muhammad in 1310. In the Herodian tower a cut at the end of the stairs shows that the Mamluk construction was simply superimposed on the Herodian remains. The smaller upper stones of the tower show a vast contrast with the solid blocks of Herod at the base of the tower; the last are built for eternity.

Only one construction in the courtyard could not be dated until now: in the northern part a row of small stones form a low rough wall. This could be either Roman or Herodian, but its function remains a mystery.

Large 2,000 year old miqve exposed in Western Wall Tunnels

23 Sep 2009 The large and impressive miqve was uncovered in excavations of one of the most magnificent structures from the Second Temple period ever to be uncovered.       Uncovering the ancient ritual bath (Photograph: Assaf Peretz, courtesy of the Israel Antiquities Authority)

(Communicated by the Israel Antiquities Authority Spokesperson) A large and impressive ritual bath (miqve) from the end of the Second Temple period was recently uncovered in archaeological excavations the Israel Antiquities Authority is carrying out in the Western Wall tunnels, in cooperation with the Western Wall Heritage Foundation. The miqve was discovered inside the western hall of a splendid structure that is located just c. 20 meters from the Western Wall. Parts of the building were discovered in the past and the Israel Antiquities Authority is currently exposing another one of the three halls inside it. It is one of the most magnificent structures from the Second Temple period ever to be uncovered. The edifice is built of very delicately dressed ashlar stones and the architectural decoration in it is of the highest quality. From an architectural and artistic standpoint there are similarities between this structure and the three magnificent compounds that King Herod built on the Temple Mount, in the Cave of the Patriarchs and at Allonei Mamre, and from which we can conclude the great significance that this building had in the Second Temple period. In his book The War of the Jews, Josephus Flavius writes there was a government administrative center that was situated at the foot of the Temple. Among the buildings he points out in this region were the council house and the “Xistus”- the ashlar bureau. According to the Talmud it was in this bureau that the Sanhedrin – the Jewish high court at the time of the Second Temple – would convene. It may be that the superb structure the Israel Antiquities Authority is presently uncovering belonged to one of these two buildings. According to archaeologist Alexander Onn, director of the excavation on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority, “It is interesting to see that in the middle of the first century CE they began making changes in this magnificent structure – at that time it was no longer used as a government administrative building and a large miqve was installed inside its western hall where there were c. 11 steps that descend to the immersion pool. It seems that the city of Jerusalem grew in this period and it became necessary to provide for the increased ritual bathing needs of the pilgrims who came to the Temple in large numbers, especially during the three pilgrimage festivals (Shlosha Regalim). Immersing oneself in the miqve and maintaining ritual purity were an inseparable part of the Jewish way of life in this period, and miqve’ot were absolutely essential, especially in the region of the Temple.” The Western Wall Heritage Foundation acts to uncover the Jewish people’s past at the Western Wall, and the miqve is further evidence of the deep ties the Jewish people have with Jerusalem and the Temple. Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz, the rabbi in charge of the Western Wall and the holy places, pointed out the cooperation between the Western Wall Heritage Foundation and the Israel Antiquities Authority which have joined together in order to discover the rich history of Jerusalem there, while strictly ensuring that no excavations approach the Temple Mount compound, contact with which is forbidden by Halachic law.

6,000 Year Old Cemetery Exposed in IAA Excavations

	In excavations conducted along the planned route of Highway 6, south of Moshav Sede Moshe, the Antiquities Authority has exposed dozens of burial caves c. 6,000 years old in which there are large painted and incised ceramic kraters, stone matzevot, and hundreds of funerary offerings such as: jewelry, miniature vessels and bird figurines.

Photographs of 6,000 year old kraters In the IAA excavations conducted at the request of the Cross Israel Highway Company along Highway 6, southeast of the Kiryat Gat-Bet Guvrin road, a cemetery was exposed that dates to the 4thmillennium BCE, the time of the Chalcolithic period.   The site was discovered by inspectors of the Antiquities Authority when the route of the highway was being prepared and dozens of burial caves were revealed in which hundreds of artifacts, 6,000 years old, were preserved. Among the items recovered are stone and clay burial vessels, hard limestone matzevot and hundreds of funerary gifts such as: jewelry made of shells, stone and bone, miniature vessels, bird figurines etc.   In some of the caves important and extremely rare finds were exposed. These include large intact clay kraters decorated with paint; one of them is adorned with rare incised decorations depicting ibexes on the sides of the krater. According to Peter Fabian, the director of the excavation on behalf of the Antiquities Authority, these decorations are artistically similar to the rock paintings that portray ibexes which are found throughout the Negev. “This krater is one-of-a-kind and no other such example has been found in excavations at contemporary sites”, Fabian says.   The Antiquities Authority reports that the burial field is unique from the standpoint of its size, scope and the variety of funerary methods practiced there, and that its discovery will contribute to understanding the material culture and burial customs that existed in that period.

The Saul A. Fox National Coin Center

The Saul A. Fox National Coin Center and Collection comprises of more than 120,000 coins, spanning a period of some 2,300 years, from the invention of coinage in the 7th century BCE, to the 17th century CE. The majority of coins are single finds from large and small excavations. In addition, the collection includes more than 150 hoards of gold, silver and bronze coins, beginning in the Persian period through to the Ottoman period.  The collection's exceptional importance lies in the fact that the provenance of almost all the coins has been ascertained. Consequently it constitutes one of the largest scientific numismatic data-bases of its kind in the world, ideally suited for in-depth study of coin-types, distribution patterns, and intra/inter-site circulation. The nucleus of the collection is comprised of a group of 10,000 coins acquired by numismatists from purchases and excavations between 1925 –1948.

The staff of the Saul A. Fox National Coin Center performs a wide range of tasks, both scientific and curatorial. Its members specialize in the identification, registration and scientific publication of coins found in excavations. Additional duties include lectures and scientific consultation for researchers and archaeologists; preparation of coin exhibits in Israel and abroad and preparation of educational material.

One of the unique and fascinating features of the Saul Fox National Coin Center in the National Campus will be the rare opportunity for the public to visit objects in the visible housing, as well as to observe the work performed in the conservation and restoration laboratories by our coins conservators. This remarkable feature is an important and dramatic example of the IAA’s mission to provide increasingly enhanced accessibility to its huge collections.

BN SHOSHAN (Hebr. form, or ) or IBN SUSAN (Arab. form, "Susan," both forms meaning "lily"):

 

Table of Contents

• Joseph ben Solomon ibn Shoshan (called also Yazid ibn Omar ha-Nasi):
• Issachar ben Mordecai ibn Susan:
• David ibn Shoshan:
• 
  
• Spanish family of Toledo, which can be traced back to the twelfth century and which is known to have existed up to the seventeenth century. Its first known representative was Solomon, called "Paṭṭish he-Ḥazaḳ" (="the mighty hammer"). He was nasi in Toledo in the twelfth century (Graetz, "Hist." iii. 384).

Joseph ben Solomon ibn Shoshan (called also Yazid ibn Omar ha-Nasi):

Communal worker in Toledo; died there 1205. He succeeded his father as nasi in that city, and stood high in the favor of the court. Graetz says that he was a favorite of Alfonso VIII. of Castile (1166-1214). He built a beautiful synagogue in Toledo, which is mentioned in "Ha-Manhig" (ed. Constantinople, p. 27a), and is also alluded to in the chronogram "1205," the year of his death, in his epitaph (see S. D. Luzzatto, "Abne Zikkaron," No. 75; Rapoport, in "Kerem Ḥemed," vii. 249-253). He gave a friendly reception at his home in Toledo to Abraham ben Nathan, the author of "Ha-Manhig." The poet Al-Ḥarizi composed two elegies on his death, one of which exists in manuscript, while the other is printed in the "Taḥkemoni " (ed. Warsaw, 1890, l. 412; comp. xlvi. 350).

Joseph's son Solomon was also nasi of Toledo, in succession to his father.

Bibliography:

• D. Cassel, in Zunz Jubelschrift, p. 125;
• A. Geiger, in Wiss. Zeit. Jüd. Theol. ii. 129;
• Grätz, Gesch. vi. 189, 328 et seq.;
• Zunz, Z. G. Index, s.v. Schoschan.

Among other members of the family who lived in the thirteenth century were: Abraham, who built houses of shelter for poor travelers in Toledo. Judah, known for his generosity. Sisa, grandfather of the writer Judah ben Moses of Toledo. Samuel, who provided the Talmudical high schools of Cairo and Jerusalem with oil, and who suffered in a persecutionof the Jews in Toledo. Jacob, a Jewish judge, appointed by the government.

In the fourteenth century prominent members of the family were: David, a judge, son of the above-mentioned Jacob. He was associated with Asher ben Jehiel. Meïr ben Abraham, representative of the community, and his son Abraham (see Jew. Encyc. i. 119b). Jacob, who in 1340 was divorced from his wife Satbona, daughter of Judah Benveniste of Loria. Isaac, a physician; born 1324; died of the plague in 1399 (Graetz, l.c. iv. 113). Joseph, a thorough student of the Talmud and of theology; author of a commentary on Pirḥe Abot (Neubauer, "Cat. Bodl. Hebr. MSS." No. 385, 2; MS. Paris, No.

Noteworthy members in the fifteenth century were: Meïr ben Joseph, physician. "a helper of the poor"; died in Toledo 1415. An Ibn Shoshan, whose given name is not known; author of a short commentary on Ibn Gabirol's "Azharot" (Neubauer, l.c. No. 1177, 1b). Samuel ben Zadok, author of a festival prayer (De Rossi, MS. Parma No. 1377) and of a short compendium on Jacob ben Asher's "Ṭur Oraḥ Ḥayyim," under the title "Sefer 'Eẓ, Ḥayyim" (MS. Paris, No. 444). Samuel, author of Sabbath sermons (Buxtorf, "Bibl. Rab." p. 467) and of a supercommentary on Rashi's commentary on the Pentateuch (Neubauer, l.c. No. 201). Another Ibn Shoshan, whose given name is not known; died as a martyr in Seville in 1481. Judah ben Isaac, rabbi in Magnesia about 1500; quoted by several halakists; author of a commentary on Ruth.

To the sixteenth century belong: Joseph, lived in Constantinople; publisher of Midrash Tanḥuma (1522).David, physician in Jerusalem (1536). Isaac, copyist of a cabalistic work in Safed (Neubauer, l.c. No. 1540).David ben Samuel, author of a commentary on Ecclesiastes (Geiger, "Jüd. Zeit." iii. 444). Solomon ben Samuel lived in Salonica.

Issachar ben Mordecai ibn Susan:

Palestinian mathematician; flourished 1539-72. In early youth he removed from the Maghreb, perhaps from Fez, to Jerusalem, where he became a pupil of Levi ibn Ḥabib. From there he went to Safed, where, under great hardship, he continued his studies. But his increasing poverty induced him, in 1539, to leave Safed and seek a living elsewhere. At this time he commenced a work on the calendar, giving, among other things, tables which embraced the years 5299-6000 (1539-2240). After his return to Safed he resumed his work on the calendar, in which he was assisted by the dayyan Joshua. It was published at Salonica, in 1564, under the title "Tiḳḳun Yissakar." The second edition, under the title "'Ibbur Shanim" (Venice, 1578), is not as rare as the first. The tables in both editions begin with the year of publication.

The book also contains, in two appendixes, a treatise on rites ("minhagim") depending upon the variations in the calendar from year to year, and a treatise on the division of the weekly portions and the hafṭarot according to the ritual of the different congregations. For the latter treatise the author quotes as his source ancient manuscript commentaries, and holds that, according to the opinion of a certain scholar, the division of the weekly portions is to be traced back to Ezra. Rites, anonymously given, are, according to p. 51, 2d edition, taken from Abudarham, to whom the author attributes great authority.

Bibliography:

• Fuenn, Keneset Yisrael, i. 704;
• Fürst, Bibl. Jud. iii. 396;
• Steinschneider, Cat. Bodl. col. 1061;
• idem, in Abhandlungen zur Gesch. der Mathematik, 1899, ix. 479.

David ibn Shoshan:

A blind and very rich man of Salonica; died in Constantinople. Of good general education, he was intimately acquainted with the Talmud as well as with philosophy and mathematics. He was well known for his thorough knowledge of the law-books of the Mohammedans, and many Moslem scholars and judges came to him at Salonica to be taught their own law. Later he left for Constantinople, where he remained till his death and where, on account of his scholarship, he was highly respected by the Mohammedan students. One of his pupils was Asher Cohen ibn Ardot (d. 1645).

Bibliography:

• Conforte, Ḳore ha-Dorot, pp. 33b, 39a, 40a, 45a;
• Benjamin Motal, Tummat Yesharim, Preface, Venice, 1622;
• Zunz, Z. G. p. 440.

Members of the family in the seventeenth century were: Eliezer, son of the above-mentioned David, in Constantinople (1622). It is related of him that every Friday he cleaned with his beard the place in front of the Holy Ark. David ben David, rabbi in Salonica about 1660.

Bibliography:

• Zunz, Z. G. pp. 436 et seq.

Jewish money - Israeli ancient coins and money

The state of Israel has always tried to connect its coins and paper money to its roots. Ancient coins with Jewish emblems such as harps and menorahs have been found by archaeologists all over Israel. The designs of current Israeli coins maintains this tradition. During the War of 1948 the then Israeli pound had a generic design but by the mid 1950s the notes bore pictures of Israeli flowers and landscapes. The popular name of the pound was lira and the lesser monetary units equivalent to cents were called pruta as known in the Talmud. In the 1970s the government changed the monetary system to shekels, the name for currency in ancient Israel and the lesser monetary units to agurot featuring prominent Jewish and Israeli personalities such as Albert Einstein, Theodor Herzl, Maimonides and Moses Montefiore. The most recent change was in 1999 when the new series was introduced with pictures of Israeli presidents. This Jewish history moment was brought to you by Israel National Radio.

First Temple Period Site

Israel's Ancient Coin Center

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Synagogues

Harrisburg is the capital of Pennsylvania and while not a large city (city population around 50,000), there is a large and historic Jewish Community. The metro area has 7 synagogues, a Jewish Community Center, several Jewish cemeteries, all the various Jewish organizations as well as a moving Holocaust Memorial located along the riverfront. Two synagogues, Beth El and Ohev Sholom, maintain historic structures along Front Street a short distance from the downtown core. Temple Ohev Sholom is a Reform congregation founded in 1853. Their present Neo-Classical Revival synagogue was built in 1920. It is a handsome edifice facing the river. Additions have been made to the synagogue campus over the years always in harmony with the original temple building. Ohev Sholom is the largest Reform synagogue in South Central Pennsylvania and the oldest Jewish congregation.http://ohevsholom.org/

 

 

Photographs By Julian H. Preisler - 2012

Beth El Temple is a Conservative congregation established in 1926. Located just up the street from Ohev Sholom, their structure is a striking combination of Moorish-Revival and Byzantine-Revival architecture. Dedicated in 1928, additions have beenmade in 1952 and 1981. Beth El Temple is the largest Jewish congregation in the area. http://www.betheltemplehbg.org/

Photographs By Julian H. Preisler - 2012



In 2009 a tragic fire destroyed the entire interior of the synagogue of Congregation Chisuk Emuno, also in Harrisburg. Located a short distance from Beth El Temple, the congregation was established in 1883 and dedicated their Mid-Century Modern synagogue in 1956. That building stands boarded-up awaiting either re-use or demolition. The congregation broke ground in late 2011 on their new synagogue which will be located a short distance away from the former building. A future blog post will include photographs of their new building once it is completed.http://www.chisukemuna.org/

 

Photographs By Julian H. Preisler - 2012

Harrisburg also has an Orthodox congregation, Kesher Israel, established in 1902. Their Mid-Century Modern synagogue is located in the vicinity of Beth El Temple and the former Chisuk Emuno synagogue. I will post photos of their building when I make another trip up to Harrisburg. Jewish congregations also exist in Carlisle, Mechanicsburg and Middletown, all in the metro Harrisburg-Hershey area. Mechanicsburg's Temple Beth Shalom is the only Reconstructionist Jewish congregation in Central Pennsylvania. http://tbshalom.org/

SYNAGOGUE ARCHITECTURE

The Hebrew word for synagogue is not beth ha-tefillah, ‘house of prayer’, as might be expected. Rather, it is beth ha-knesset, ‘house of assembly’, proof that wherever Jews live, the synagogue lies at the very centre of communal life.

The synagogue grew in importance after the Temple in Jerusalem was destroyed in 70 C.E. While it remained the focus of Jewish worship, dispersed communities needed a focus for expressing their faith, especially in the growing diasporas of Egypt, Babylonia and Rome. Synagogues were probably built from the 6th century B.C.E., when Jews returned from exile in Babylon.

Jesus preached in synagogues; Philo and Josephus wrote about them. Remains of Greco-Jewish synagogues are found in Capernaum (Kfar Nahum), near the Sea of Galilee dated at 2nd century C.E.; Dura Europos, Syria, (2nd century C.E.); Sardis in Turkey; Elche in Spain; Ostia in Italy; and Beit Alpha, northern Israel (6th century C.E.). The latter has a mosaic floor showing Noah's flood, zodiac signs, and the sacrifice of Isaac (the akedah).

Interior of the Belz Grand synagogue in Jerusalem, widely considered the largest synagogue in the world.

The elements that constitute a synagogue are the aron ha-kodesh(‘holy ark’ or niche in the eastern wall, containing the Torah scrolls); the amud (prayer desk, facing the ark) and the bima (the pulpit), from where the Torah is read. Sephardi synagogues have a bima a teba (box), and read the entire service from there. Borrowing from the Islamic al-minbar (platform), the Sephardibima is also called the almemar.

Later synagogues adopted the ner tamid (eternal light), which represents the Torah's holiness, and also recalls the light that burned in the Temple. This is a candle or other light that burns in the synagogue, whether or not the synagogue is in use.

Synagogue architecture often mimics that of the host community. For instance, Spanish synagogues of the Muslim period had horseshoe arches and beautiful stucco arabesques. Oriental synagogues tended to seat worshippers on rugs or cushions (like some mosques), whereas Ashkenazi synagogues had pews and standing desks instead (like most churches). Modern Western synagogues tend to place the bima in front of the ark, not in the building's centre, partly for aesthetic reasons and partly to direct attention to the sermon, as in Protestant churches.

Interior of the Santa Maria La Blanca Synagogue in Spain. Built during the 'Golden Age' of Spain (prior to the expulsion of Jews in 1492), it shows heavy Moorish influence in its style of architecture.

After 1200 some European synagogues deliberately imitated secular buildings, not churches. Courtyards decreased due to state restrictions. East European Jews built fortress-synagogues. Where affordable, the mechitsa (curtain dividing men from women) developed into a separate 'women's gallery'. Reform synagogues eschewed this practice for doctrinal reasons.

18th century Polish synagogues resembled distinctive wooden pagodas. Later, European emancipation introduced new styles: Baroque, Romanesque, pseudo-Byzantine and Greek Temple. Wealthier communities built cathedral synagogues, blending a neo-Gothic template with Moorish embellishments (witness The New West End, St Petersburg Place, London; and the Oranienstrasse Synagogue, Berlin).

Modern architects like Moshe Safdie and Frank Lloyd Wright revolutionised synagogue design. At the same time, many orthodox communities prefer to return to the simplicity and utility of the shtiebl, or humble prayer room.

A beautiful building says much about communal aspirations. Ultimately, though, a synagogue’s spirituality depends on the nature of its rabbi and congregation.

 
The Grand Choral Synagogue in St Petersburg (above) shows typical Russian influences
in the style of its architecture.