Amazing Western Wall discovery: New section, ancient theater, uncovered in Jerusalem

Fox News ^ | 10-14-17 | James Rogers

[SJackson]

In a stunning discovery, archaeologists in Jerusalem have uncovered a new section of the Western Wall that has been hidden for 1,700 years.

Recent excavations at the holy site, which were announced Monday, revealed eight stone courses, or horizontal layers of stones, buried under 26 feet of earth. The completely preserved stone courses are constructed from massive stones and were discovered in Jerusalem’s Western Wall tunnels.

The Western Wall is part of an ancient retaining wall supporting the Temple Mount where the Jewish First and Second Temples once stood.

When experts from the Israel Antiquities Authority removed the soil, they were stunned to discover the remains of a theater-like structure that dates to the Roman period. The theater corresponds to historical records that describe a theater near Jerusalem’s Temple Mount.

The finds were made beneath Wilson’s Arch, a structure at the Northern end of the Western Wall plaza that was once part of a huge bridge leading to the Temple Mount.

“From a research perspective, this is a sensational find,” said site excavators Dr. Joe Uziel, Tehillah Lieberman and Dr. Avi Solomon, in a statement. “The discovery was a real surprise.”

[Silent One]

How did the 26 feet of earth accumulate to cover the structures in only 2,000+/- years? Were they covered deliberately?

After the Bar Kokhba revolt ca. 135-138AD, Hadrian had tons of feces brought in to cover the site. So, yes, they were covered deliberately. Hadrian's idea was to cover so deeply that the 2nd Temple would never be rebuilt.

[Eleutheria5]

The Second Revolt, if you mean Bar Kochba’s uprising, took place after the destruction of the Second Temple, so for this to have been built in the Second Temple period would preclude that. The Romans were around for a while.

[SJackson]

ping

[SJackson]

Don’t know, maybe someone is familiar with accumulation in the region. The chamber may have been built below ground level.

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks SJackson. This one will serve as the weekly ping. Sorry all, but I won't be adding the godsgravesglyphs keyword to pinged topics.

[bitt]

amazing

[TXnMA]

It appears to me that the pre-excavation ground surface (apparent evidence of grass roots) was just above eye level of the worker in the first photo. That means that -- at that point -- they had uncovered one full course of big stones, and exposed the top of another. That's less than 2 meters of fill removal in that area.

Either that was early in the excavation sequence, or it was not the area described with eight courses and 26 feet of fill.

Considering how the wind blows sand around in that area, 26 feet's not a surprising amount of infill or overburden...

(Similar-conditions analogy: When I was working on construction of a pipeline compressor station in New Mexico, several times -- after a single windy night -- I had to sweep over a half inch of sand off the desktop inside my "construction shack" engineering office...)

It's too bad that neither the second picture nor the article gives any clue as to how the "theater's" depth or level relates to the first photo...

~~~~~~~~~~~

"Journalists" write lousy archaeological reports... '-)