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| Visible tree rings. (Photo: Efrat Bocher) |
The IAA’s [Israel Antiquities Authority] Dr. Johanna Regev, who is studying the beams, said: “It is very rare in Israel to find wood with such a large number of growth rings. Here in the City of David, we found thick beams with many rings, offering significant research potential, with more growth rings enabling higher dating resolution." “Until now, we could date finds within a range of hundreds of years,” she said. “Now, we can attain much greater precision, narrowing the dating range down to as little as 10 years.”
According to the IAA, Jerusalem’s returning residents, as they began to rebuild the city, probably made a deliberate decision to preserve the memory of the destruction by leaving behind remains that tell the story of the catastrophe.
“The concept of a landscape of memory is familiar from many cultures around the world,” said Dr. Yiftah Shalev, who is directing the excavation on behalf of the IAA alongside Prof. Yuval Gadot of Tel Aviv University.
The First Temple was built between the10th and the 8th century BCE. Ample physical evidence confirms the existence of both the First and the Second Temple. The Dome of the Rock was built directly of the Foundation Stone, believed by some to be where the Holy of Holies was located. Completed in 691-2 C.E., is' construction took place almost 600 years after the Second Temple was destroyed. It's almost amusing to note that the first Muslims who came to Jerusalem around 638 referred to it not as Al Quds, but as Madinat bayt al Maqdis...the City of the Temple.
I discovered archaeology in fourth grade. What most intrigued me was the ability to figure out when stuff happened. This was a life-changing thought process for me and one though, even though I didn’t pursue archaeology in college, has never changed. I remain a timeline person That's what a timeline does for you...it tells you when events took place. Timelines should always be well documented and open for examination. Timelines are important in perceiving the world and history in correct order.
For example: the Cave of Letters was a treasure trove of artifacts from the time of the Bar Kokhba Revolt around 135 C.E. The Wikipedia article describes the first find:
The first finding was of a niche of skulls. Tucked away in a crevice opening were remains of human skeletons, wrapped in textiles and covered in a large mat. One skeleton was covered by a colorful mat and other textiles, while the remains of a child dressed in a tunic were discovered in a leather lined basket. The textiles found were some of the earliest known of the Roman period and were dated around 135. These textiles were of importance in showing the kinds of dyes and the weaving material used. Also of importance was the acquisition of a complete set of clothes worn by Jews of the 1st and 2nd century. Among them were adult-sized mantles, a child's linen tunic, and some un-spun wool dyed purple.
Other finds of archeological significance were samples of Bar Kochba Revolt coinage, inscribed on one side 'Shimeon' and on the other, 'to the Freedom of Jerusalem' (לחרות ירושלם). Some arrows were found at the entrance to the cave, and a basket of bronze vessels and incense shovels. They had been made with Roman images on them, but the faces of the various pagan gods and creatures were defaced.
On the other hand, fictional timelines are all the rage these days. Whether it's the origin of Jews, the existence of a Palestinian nation, or even who attacked who on October 7th, timelines are twisted and fabricated to fit a narrative. Gone is the need to use historical evidence, be it physical, cultural, literature, music, art, or tombstones, replaced by wishful thinking and fairytales. I'm not suggesting the Bible is a great way to create a real timeline, but there are things that line up. The Tomb of Zechariah, for one. It's still standing on the Mount of Olives even though it was created in the first century. But that is not the oldest grave. The oldest one is said to be 3,000 years old with over 150,000 graves. The newest grave in this cemetery was probably opened this week. Yes, we're still buying our dead in this cemetery.
Just for the sake of comparison, France was settled by the Gaul until Rome conquered it in 51 C.E. But it didn't really become France until the Treaty of Verdun in 843 C.E. Jews had already been through several Judean governments by then, along with two major exiles. Are you gonna tell the French they are not indigenous to France? Or that England really isn't English at all, but Viking, Danish, and/or French? Good luck with that.
But while all this is fascinating (at least to me) what today is about is October 7th, 2023. That's the day terrorists from Gaza who seem to think they are indigenous to a thing named Palestine by the Romans during the Bar Kochba revolt against Rome in 135 C.E. That's when JEWS went up against Rome and lost. To humiliate the losers...they changed the name of the country to something they made up. These terrorists charged across the border, slaughtered people...women, men, children, holocaust survivors, and grandparents in their beds and saferooms. They murdered hundreds at a music and peace festival. They raped and mutilated corpses. They threw hand grenades into bomb shelters. They dragged hundreds, both alive and dead, back into Gaza as hostages. Jews, Muslims, Christians, Buddhists...it didn't matter. They murdered and kidnapped whoever was in front of them.
Hamas sought to torture all Jews, not just hostages or Israelis. The visceral pain they executed amongst survivors families speaks to their inhumanity...to us and perhaps more tellingly, to their own people who cannot be overlooked or ignored. Thousands died in the Gaza war only because Hamas willed it to be so. To say otherwise is a betrayal the people of Gaza who neither chose nor deserved to be human shields and sacrifices to the vanity of old men who staunchly refuse provide security, safety, or an economy to their own people in favor of peddling hate. Instead of building a state where Gazans can thrive, the only thing they built were their own death camps.
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If you have not read her book, UNTIL WE SEE YOU AGAIN, please do. It is a scream and a cry from the very depths of a human soul. If Hamas sought to break Jewish and Israeli families, they did not. Not one person gave up on bringing back the hostages alive until they knew they were dead. The conversation Ms. Goldberg-Polin had with the moderator was profoundly terrifying and strengthening at the same time. One listens to her talk about the soul crushing pain of being unable to rescue your child and you can't help but wonder if you could've survived what she and Jon, her husband have survived.
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| At day 52. |
She also talks at length about Viktor Frankl's MAN IN SEARCH OF MEANING and how survivors told her Hersh often quoted the line: Those who have a 'why' to live, can bear with almost any 'how'.
Maybe that's the secret: knowing the why. Why we go on. Why we choose a path. Why we say what we say. Maybe understanding really comes from that very basic, foundational knowledge we often ignore.
