In recent days, the unveiling of an impressive section of the Jerusalem Wall from the Hasmonean period, built at the end of the 2nd century BCE, was completed.
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The fortification was discovered in the area of the Tower of David, near the citadel, within the historic complex known as the Qishla. This section of wall, which was uncovered in an archaeological excavation by the Israel Antiquities Authority, is one of the most complete and longest discovered in Jerusalem to date.
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Photo: Emil Aljem, Israel Antiquities Authority, Gabriel Wolkowitz, Tower of David Jerusalem Museum
Dr. Amit Ram and Dr. Marion Zindel, directors of the excavation on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority: "The newly uncovered section, known in historical sources as the 'First Wall,' is particularly impressive in its dimensions and degree of preservation. It is over 40 meters long and about 5 meters wide. The wall is meticulously built of large, heavy stones, with chiseling typical of the period.
Originally, the wall rose to a height of more than ten meters, but today only a stump remains. During the Second Temple period, the Hasmonean wall also surrounded Mount Zion, and sections of it have been exposed on Mount Zion, in the City of David, in the courtyard of the Citadel of David, and along the outer facade of the western wall of the Old City.".
The history of the Great Wall is described in detail in historical sources. Josephus, the 1st century CE historian, details its course and gates, claiming that it was "impregnable" and that 60 towers stood along its length.
""There is much more to this wall than meets the eye," say Dr. Ram and Dr. Zindel. "It is clear that it was systematically destroyed to the ground. This is planned destruction - not the result of the ravages of time or a random hit, but a deliberate action. This raises questions about who is responsible for destroying the wall.".
For this, the researchers say, there may be two main explanations: One possibility is that the wall was dismantled by the Hasmoneans themselves, as part of an agreement with Antiochus VII Sidetes. This Antiochus - one of the heirs of Antiochus IV Epiphanes, known from the events of Hanukkah, besieged Jerusalem in 132-134 BCE in an attempt to conquer it.
According to Josephus, in response to the siege, the Hasmonean leader John Hyrcanus I brokered a peace treaty with Sidetes using treasures he had taken from the tomb of King David. In the truce agreement, Sidetes demanded that Jerusalem dismantle its fortifications as a condition for lifting the siege, and it is possible that the destruction of the wall that has been uncovered is a remnant of that agreement.
Alternatively, it is possible that King Herod, seeking to distinguish his rule from that of the Hasmonean kings, deliberately destroyed their construction projects, including the mighty wall, as a political statement: "The days of the Hasmonean kings are over, and I am their successor." Systematic demolition of the wall could be consistent with this policy.
Photo: Israel Antiquities Authority and Tower of David Museum Jerusalem
Impressive material evidence of the struggles between John Hyrcanus the Hasmonean and Antiochus Sidetes was discovered very close to the newly uncovered section. During excavations conducted in the 1980s at the foot of the 'First Wall', Rene Sivan and Giora Soler discovered a large cache of hundreds of catapult stones, arrowheads, slingstones, and lead bullets dating to the Hellenistic period.
The researchers identified them as clear evidence of the siege of Antiochus VII. The heavy weapons of destruction that were rained down on the city failed to penetrate the mighty wall and fell at its foot. Some of them are currently on display in a new exhibition at the Tower of David – Jerusalem Museum.
