By Elad Benari
The foundation of a large fortress from the First Temple period was exposed in an excavation the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) conducted at Giv'at Yonah in Ashdod.
Giv’at Yonah, according to various traditions, is identified with the burial place of the prophet Jonah, and the archaeological finds that were exposed verify the existence of life there during the First Temple period, at the time of this prophet.
Jonah is the prophet who was commanded by G-d to got the city of Nineveh and proclaim against it. When he refused to do so, G-d ordered a large fish to swallow him.
In a trial archaeological excavation the IAA carried out on in the area, remains of massive walls more than one meter wide were found that are dated to the late eighth century and early seventh century BCE.
Excavation director Dmitri Egorov of the IAA said the walls constituted the base of a large building from the First Temple period, the time when Jonah the prophet was active.
The IAA noted that the discovery of this fortress joins other finds from an excavation that took place very close to this site in the 1960s. One excavation directed by Magen Broshi of the Department of Antiquities, which was carried out before the construction of the Ashdod lighthouse, similar wall remains were found that date to the First Temple period and Persian period.
Sa'ar Ganor, the Ashkelon District Archaeologist of the Israel Antiquities Authority, said after the discovery, “Giv'at Yonah, which rises c. 50 m above sea level, is the highest hill in Ashdod, whence one can look out to sea, to Tel Mor – located in the Nahal Lachish estuary which was probably an ancient anchorage, and to Tel Ashdod. Due to its strategic location, it is not surprising to find there remains of a fortress that overlooked the region in the First Temple period”.
He added, “There are two possibilities regarding who inhabited the fortress at that time: one possibility is that it was controlled by the Assyrians who were the regional rulers in the Iron Age. Another possibility is that Josiah, king of Judah, occupied the fort at the time, who we know conquered territory from the Assyrians and controlled Ashdod-Yam in the seventh century BCE.”
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The Lost Tribes of Israel: History, Myth and Misperception
Source: UCLA Happenings
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
12:00 pm - 2:00 pm, Royce Hall - Room 306
12:00 pm - 2:00 pm, Royce Hall - Room 306
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The myth of the "Lost Tribes" of Israel has sparked speculation and curiosity for centuries, leading to a vast network of theories ranging from the sublime to the ridiculous. But beneath the myth is a series of events that point in a very different direction regarding the fate of ancient Israel's tribes after their alleged disappearance from the stage of history. Clues from the Bible, archaeological remains and ancient historical sources combine to clear the misperceptions regarding who these tribes really were and why the came to be viewed as "lost".
About the speaker: Mark Leuchter is director of Jewish Studies in the Department of Religion at Temple University. He serves as the series editor for Perspectives in Biblical Literature for Georgia Press, is a member of the editorial board for the journals Biblical Theology Bulletin and The Journal of Hebrew Scriptures, and is the program unit co-chair for the Society of Biblical Literature Priests and Levites in Biblical History and Tradition group. His books include Josiah's Reform and Jeremiah's Scroll: Historical Calamity and Prophetic Response (Sheffield Phoenix Press, 2006), The Polemics of Exile in Jeremiah 26-45 (Cambridge UP, 2008), and Samuel in Perspective (Oxford University Press, forthcoming), and his articles have appeared in a variety of scholarly journals.
About the speaker: Mark Leuchter is director of Jewish Studies in the Department of Religion at Temple University. He serves as the series editor for Perspectives in Biblical Literature for Georgia Press, is a member of the editorial board for the journals Biblical Theology Bulletin and The Journal of Hebrew Scriptures, and is the program unit co-chair for the Society of Biblical Literature Priests and Levites in Biblical History and Tradition group. His books include Josiah's Reform and Jeremiah's Scroll: Historical Calamity and Prophetic Response (Sheffield Phoenix Press, 2006), The Polemics of Exile in Jeremiah 26-45 (Cambridge UP, 2008), and Samuel in Perspective (Oxford University Press, forthcoming), and his articles have appeared in a variety of scholarly journals.
