Evidence of ancient earthquake found in Jerusalem [mid-eighth century B.C.]

Phys.org ^ | August 10, 2021 | Bob Yirka

[SunkenCiv]

A team of researchers with the Israel Antiquities Authority has found evidence of a strong earthquake occurring in the city of Jerusalem approximately 2,800 years ago...

Prior research had uncovered evidence of a large earthquake in Israel in the mid-eighth century B.C. at sites such as Hatzor and Tell es-Safi/Gath, but no evidence had been found in Jerusalem. In this new effort, the researchers found evidence of damage from the time at a dig site in the City of David National Park, along with references... in both the book of Zechariah and the book of Amos.

...they found physical evidence in the form of broken pottery, lamps, cooking utensils, furniture and crumbled walls. They also found what they describe as a "row of shattered vessels" reminiscent of damage seen in other earthquakes. The artifacts had been covered over by the survivors of the earthquake who had then built structures on top of it, creating what the team describes as a layer of destruction. In looking at the damaged goods, they could find no evidence of fire or intentional damage, such as from invaders, leaving an earthquake as the most likely candidate. They also note that the buried depth of the artifacts helped place them to the time of the earthquake.

The researchers were surprised by the things they found at the dig site because prior research had shown that Jerusalem continued to exist as a city after the earthquake, up to the time of the Babylonian destruction which occurred approximately 200 years later. They suggest that it appears likely that while Jerusalem was strongly impacted by the earthquake, it was not the epicenter. The team is scheduled to give a presentation outlining their work at this year's City of David Research Conference.

[SunkenCiv]

Remains of the tools shattered in the earthquake. Photo: Eliyahu Yanai, City of David

[SunkenCiv]

One of *those* topics.

---

join or quit view topics view or post blog bookmark post new topic subscribe

---

[SunkenCiv]

[seowulf]

Have they found any trumpets yet?

[grey_whiskers]

OK, I’ll bite.
How can they tell that from any other shards of ancient pottery?

[LibertyWoman]

That’s how the Dome of the Rock will be destroyed. It’s always said that the Temple will have to be re-built there per Prophecy. I used to wonder ‘how’ that would happen. The Israelis take it out? Unlikely. An earthquake...that’s the one thing that could obliterate it making room for the 3rd Temple.

[PIF]

Have they found any trumpets yet?
—
Satchmo got the trumpet.

[mjp]

The words of Amos, one of the shepherds of Tekoa, what he saw concerning Israel two years after the earthquake, when Uzziah was King of Judah, and Jeroboam, son of Jehoash was king of Israel.

Amos 1:1

This was written around 786 BC

[Avoiding_Sulla]

"One of those topics."

So this is "about mid-eighth Century B.C."

IIRC -- verify please -- Dr. V did suggest a massive earthquake would explain how the Assyrians suddenly disappeared literally overnight at the height of their long siege of Jerusalem in 701 BC? All around the city wall but not the city itself is hard to (no pun intended at first) for a man to swallow.

[SunkenCiv]

Dr. V did suggest a massive earthquake would explain how the Assyrians suddenly disappeared literally overnight at the height of their long siege of Jerusalem in 701 BC?

Hmm, not that I'm aware. He discusses the overnight destruction of Sennacherib's army in WiC.

• Sennacherib: the Year - 701
• The Siloam Aqueduct
• The Later Campaigns of Sennacherib
• Sennacherib’s Last Campaign
• Theses for the Reconstruction of Ancient History

[SunkenCiv]

In this case, it’s because the whole pile of stuff was smashed and not set on fire, as it might (probably would) be in the case of an invasion. But that’s indeed a tricky one. Michael Wood (the documentary maker) takes on that very problem in his Trojan War doc, pointing out that assigning destruction of just one destruction layer of Troy to an earthquake appears to be arbitrary.

[SunkenCiv]

Other sites show the evidence of an earthquake, and it can be closely dated.

https://watchjerusalem.co.il/479-uzziah-uncovering-a-king-of-judah

[SunkenCiv]

Whoops, sorry for that ping, LibertyGal.

[grey_whiskers]

It's part of one of those things which makes archaeology so challenging, Feline Fragmentation.

[SunkenCiv]

[snip] The midrashim explain that on the memorable day of Hezekiah the sun retarded to set by the same amount, namely ten degrees (maaloth in Hebrew is preferrably “degrees” and more so when applied to the sundial) by which it speeded up to descend on the sundial built by Ahaz—and, further, that this phenomenon of acceleration of the sun reaching the horizon took place on the day Ahaz was brought to the grave. Since Sennacherib came toward all the fenced cities in Hezekiah’s domain in his (Hezekiah’s ) fourteenth year, and Sennacherib, according to his own descriptions and reliefs, was tarrying in Palestine, besieging Lachish and reducing many places one by one to his yoke, it is well thinkable that Jerusalem under the “proud Judean, Hezekiah” besieged like “a bird in a cage” submitted to pay tribute when nearly fifteen years of Hezekiah on the throne had passed... [/snip]

• The Reign of King Hezekiah

[SunkenCiv]

Yes, the field is *littered* with it. /rimshot

[grey_whiskers]

Ouch. It took me this whole time to catch your pun.
I am touched to the quick, sirrah!

[LibertyWoman]

That was some earthquake. 8.2 on the richter 9.0 when using the Mercalli intensity. Sounds like plenty of evidence to support the fact that there was a quake. I love this stuff! (can you add me to your list? or is it full... ) Thanks for the link btw.

[Avoiding_Sulla]

Thanks. From your 4th link:

Then in a single night the Assyrian host, about 185,000 warriors, perished, destroyed by some natural cause.(1)

It's been over 40 years since I read that. Imagination may have filled in the for what would have to be enormous "natural causes."

[SunkenCiv]

my pleasure.