A recent scientific discovery has revealed the truth about part of a wall in ancient Jerusalem, reflecting expert opinion and corroborating an account found in the Bible.
Until now, experts believe that this section of the wall in the original heart of the city was built by Hezekiah, King of Judah, who ruled between the seventh and eighth centuries BC.
The king had seen his neighbors to the north, in the Kingdom of Israel, destroyed by the Assyrian Empire, and believed that he built the wall to defend himself from the invaders.
But now, nearly a decade-long study has revealed that the wall was built by Uzziah, Hezekiah's great-grandfather, after a massive earthquake, mirroring the biblical account.
The Wall is located in the City of David – the historic archaeological site that formed the original city of Jerusalem, according to the Bible.
“For decades, it was assumed that this wall was built by Hezekiah, king of Judah, but it is now clear that it dates back to the days of King Uzziah,” Joe Uzzell of the Israel Antiquities Authority explains to the Daily Mail. As stated in the Bible.”
The investigation, a joint project between the Antiquities Authority, Tel Aviv University and the Weizmann Institute of Science, revealed the origin of the ancient wall through carbon-14 dating.
This technique, known as radiocarbon dating, uses the rate of decay of a radioactive carbon isotope (14C) to measure the time and date of objects containing carbonaceous material.
Scientists collected samples of organic artefacts found at four different excavation sites in the heart of Jerusalem's Old City, such as grape seeds, date pits and even bat skeletons.
They were all cleaned, converted into graphite and then placed in a particle accelerator at 3,000 kilometers per second to separate carbon-14 from other organic materials.
The new discoveries reinforce the view that Jerusalem expanded in size and gained dimensions towards Mount Zion as early as the ninth century BC, during the reign of King Joash – a hundred years before the Assyrian captivity. Furthermore, it shows that the city was larger than previously thought during the reigns of David and Solomon.
Chris Skeldon is a contributor to Brytfmonline.com, covering a wide range of topics including news, politics, business, technology, sports, entertainment, and lifestyle. He focuses on delivering clear, accurate, and reader-friendly reporting that helps audiences stay informed about current events and emerging developments. With an emphasis on useful information and balanced storytelling, Chris aims to provide timely coverage of issues and stories that matter most to readers.