Tel Lachish

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Lachish
תל לכיש (Hebrew)

The main gate of Lachish
Shown within Israel
Location Southern District, Israel
Region Shephelah
Coordinates 31°33′54″N 34°50′56″E / 31.56500°N 34.84889°E / 31.56500; 34.84889Coordinates: 31°33′54″N 34°50′56″E / 31.56500°N 34.84889°E / 31.56500; 34.84889
Type Settlement
Area 20 ha (49 acres)
History
Abandoned 587 BC
Events Siege of Lachish (701 BC)
Site notes
Excavation dates 1932–1938, 1966, 1968, 1973–1994
Archaeologists James Leslie Starkey, Olga Tuffnell, Yohanan Aharoni, David Ussishkin
Condition Ruined
Ownership Public
Public access Yes

Tel Lachish (Hebrew: תל לכיש‎; Greek: Λαχις; Latin: Tel Lachis) is a National Park in Israel. Lachish was an ancient Near East town located at the site of modern Tel Lachish or Tell ed-Duweir in the Shephelah, a region between Mount Hebron and the maritime Mediterranean coast. The town was first mentioned in the Amarna letters as Lakisha-Lakiša (EA 287, 288, 328, 329, 335). According to the Bible, the Israelites captured and destroyed Lachish for joining the league against the Gibeonites (Joshua 10:31-33), but its territory was later assigned to the tribe of Judah (15:39) and became a part of the Kingdom of Israel.

History

Commander's palace.
Assyrian siege ramp.
Judean captives being led away into slavery by the Assyrians after the siege of Lachish in 701 B.C. This relief is important for the knowledge of Judean dress.

Occupation at the site of Lachish began during the Pottery Neolithic (5500–4500 B.C.E.) period. Major development began in the Early Bronze Age (3300–3000 B.C.E.).[1] During the Middle Bronze II (2000–1650 B.C.E.), the Canaanite settlement came under strong Egyptian influence. The next peak was the late Late Bronze Age (1650–1200 B.C.E.), when Lachish is mentioned in the Amarna letters. This phase of the city was destroyed in a fire ca. 1150 BC. The city, under protection of the New Kingdom of Egypt, was rebuilt by the Caananites. A moated shrine known as the Fosse Temple was also built at the northwest corner of the mound, outside the city limits. However, this settlement was soon destroyed by another fire, perhaps from an invasion by the Sea Peoples or Israelites. The mound was abandoned for two centuries.[1]

Rebuilding of the city began in the Early Iron Age during the 9th and 10th centuries B.C.E. when it was settled by the Israelites. The unfortified settlement may have been destroyed c. 925 B.C.E. by Egyptian Pharaoh Sheshonk I.[1] In the first half of the 9th century B.C.E., under Asa of Judah and Jehoshaphat, Lachish became an important city in the Kingdom of Judah. It was heavily fortified with massive walls and ramparts. A royal palace was built on a platform in the center of the city.[1]

The single inscription which identifies the location depicted in the reliefs reads: "Sennacherib, the mighty king, king of the country of Assyria, sitting on the throne of judgment, before (or at the entrance of) the city of Lachish (Lakhisha). I give permission for its slaughter"

In 701 BC, during the revolt of king Hezekiah against Assyria, it was captured by Sennacherib despite determined resistance during the Siege of Lachish.[2] Some scholars believe that the fall of Lachish actually occurred during a second campaign in the area by Sennacherib ca. 688 BC.[citation needed] Nonetheless the site now contains the only remains of an Assyrian siege ramp in the Near East. Sennacherib later devoted a whole room in his South-West Palace in Nineveh for artistic representations of the siege on stone orthostats, now on display in the British Museum. The orthostats depict battering ramps, sappers, and other fighters along with Lachish's architecture and its surrender, these along with the archaeology give a good understanding of siege warfare of the period.[3]

The town was rebuilt in the late 7th century B.C.E. during the fall of the Neo-Assyrian Empire. However, the city fell to Nebuchadnezzar in his campaign against Judah in 586 BC. During Old Testament times Lachish served an important protective function in defending Jerusalem and the interior of Judea. The easiest way to get a large attacking army up to Jerusalem was to approach from the coast. Lachish was one of several city/forts guarding the canyons that lead up to Jerusalem and greater Judea. In order to lay siege to Jerusalem an invading army would first have to take Lachish, which guarded the mountain pass. During the reign of Hezekiah, King of Judah, the Assyrians, under King Sennacherib, attempted to take Jerusalem, and, in that campaign, succeeded in taking Lachish.

Modern excavation of the site has revealed that the Assyrians built a stone and dirt ramp up to the level of the Lachish city wall, thereby allowing the soldiers to charge up the ramp and storm the city. Excavations revealed approximately 1,500 skulls in one of the caves near the site, and hundreds of arrowheads on the ramp and at the top of the city wall, indicating the ferocity of the battle. The city occupied an area of 8 hectares (20 acres) and was finally destroyed in 587 BC.[4] Residents were exiled as part of the Babylonian captivity.[1]

During Babylonian occupation, a large residence was built on the platform that had once supported the Israeli palace. At the end of the captivity, some exiled Jews returned to Lachish and built a new city with fortifications. Around 200 B.C.E., residents built a large altar (known as the Solar Shrine) on the east section of the mound. The shrine was abandoned after the fall of the Achaemenid Empire at the hands of Alexander the Great. The tell has been unoccupied since then.[1]

Biblical references

Lachish is mentioned in several books in the Hebrew Bible. The Book of Joshua refers to Lachish in chapter 10 (verses 3, 5, 23, and 31-35), describing the Israeli conquest of Caanan. Japhia, the King of Lachish, is listed as one of the Five Amorite Kings that allied to repel the invasion. After a surprise attack from the Israelites, the kings took refuge in a cave, where they were captured and put to death. Joshua and the Israelites then took the city of Lachish after a two-day siege, exterminating the populace. In 12:11, the King of Lachish is mentioned as one of the thirty-one kings conquered by Joshua. The city is assigned to the Tribe of Judah in 15:39 as part of the western foothills.

Rehoboam's fortifications of Lachish are recorded in II Chronicles (11:9). In II Kings (14:17) and II Chronicles 25:37, Amaziah of Judah flees to Lachish after he was defeated by Jehoash of Israel, where he is captured and executed.

The Book of Micah (1:13) warns the residents of Lachish that the destruction of Samaria by the Assyrians will soon spread to Judah. Chapter 18 (verse 14) of II Kings mentions the Siege of Lachish; Hezekiah sends a message there offering tribute to Sennacherib in exchange for the city. In verse 17, the Assyrians leave Lachish and head to Jerusalem to begin the unsuccessful Assyrian Siege of Jerusalem. This is also mentioned in II Chronicles 32:9 and Isaiah 36:2. The Israelis learn of the departure of the Assyrians from Lachish in II Kings 19:8 and Isaiah 37:8.

The Book of Jeremiah (34:7) lists Lachish as one of the last three fortified cities in Judah to fall to the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar II. In the Book of Nehemiah (11:30) Lachish is mentioned as an area where the people of Judah settled during the time of the Achaemenid Empire.

Identification of Tell ed-Duweir as Lachish

During the 19th and early 20th centuries, Lachish was identified with Tell el-Hesi from a cuneiform tablet found there (EA 333). The tablet is a letter from an Egyptian official named Paapu, reporting cases of treachery involving a local kinglet, Zimredda. However this hypothesis is no longer accepted. [5] More recent excavations have identified Tell ed-Duweir as Lachish beyond reasonable doubt.

Archaeology

The site of Tell ed-Duweir was first excavated in 4 seasons between 1932 and 1938 by the Wellcome-Marston Archaeological Research Expedition. The work was led initially by James Leslie Starkey until he was murdered by Arab bandits. The effort was completed by Olga Tufnell; publication, identifying seven occupation levels, was completed in 1958.[6][7][8][9] In 1966 and 1968, in a dig which focused mainly on the "Solar Shrine", Yohanan Aharoni worked the site on behalf of Hebrew University and Tel Aviv University.[10][1]

More recently, excavation, and later restoration, work was conducted between 1973 and 1994 by a Tel Aviv University Institute of Arachaeology and Israel Exploration Society team led by David Ussishkin.[11][12][13] The excavation focused on the Late Bronze (1550–1200 B.C.E.) and Iron Age (1200–587 B.C.E.) levels.[1]

Paleo-Hebrew ostraca

See also: Paleo-Hebrew alphabet

Excavation campaigns by Starkey recovered a number of ostraca (18 in 1935, three more in 1938) from the latest occupational level immediately before the Chaldean siege. They then formed the only known corpus of documents in classical Hebrew.[14][15]

LMLK seals

Another major contribution to Biblical archaeology from excavations at Lachish are the LMLK seals, which were stamped on the handles of a particular form of ancient storage jar. More of these artifacts were found at this site (over 400; Ussishkin, 2004, pp. 2151–9) than any other place in Israel (Jerusalem remains in second place with more than 300). Most of them were collected from the surface during Starkey's excavations, but others were found in Level 1 (Persian and Greek era), Level 2 (period preceding Babylonian conquest by Nebuchadnezzar), and Level 3 (period preceding Assyrian conquest by Sennacherib). It is thanks to the work of David Ussishkin's team that eight of these stamped jars were restored, thereby demonstrating lack of relevance between the jar volumes (which deviated as much as 5 gallons or 12 litres), and also proving their relation to the reign of Biblical king Hezekiah.[16][17]

The 1898 Reference by Bliss, contains numerous drawings, including examples of Phoenician, etc. pottery, and items from pharaonic Egypt, and other Mediterranean, and inland regions.

Notes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 King, Philip J. (August 2005). "Why Lachish Matters". Biblical Archaeology Review 31 (4). Retrieved November 18, 2013. 
  2. ↑ David Ussishkin, The conquest of Lachish by Sennacherib, Tel Aviv University Institute of Archaeology, 1982, ISBN 965-266-001-9
  3. ↑ William H. Shea, Sennacherib's Description of Lachish and of its Conquest, Andrews University Seminary Studies, vol. 26, no. 2, pp. 171-180, 1988
  4. ↑ Samuel, Rocca (2012). The Fortifications of Ancient Israel and Judah 1200–586 BC. Oxford: Osprey Publishing. p. 32. ISBN 9781782005216. 
  5. ↑ Sir William Matthew Flinders Petrie, Tell el Hesy (Lachish), Published for the Committee of the Palestine exploration fund by A. P. Watt, 1891
  6. ↑ J.L. Starkey et al., Lachish I (Tell ed Duweir): Lachish Letters Oxford University Press, 1938
  7. ↑ Olga Tufnell et. al, Lachish II., (Tell ed Duweir). The Fosse Temple, Oxford University Press, 1940
  8. ↑ Olga Tufnell, Lachish (Tell ed-Duweir) III: The Iron Age. The Wellcome-Marston Archaeological Research Expedition to the Near East. Text and Plates Volumes, Oxford University Press, 1953
  9. ↑ Olga Tufnell, Lachish (Tell el Duweir) IV : The Bronze Age, Published for the Trustees of the late Sir Henry Wellcome by the Oxford University Press, 1958.
  10. ↑ Yohanan Aharoni, Investigations at Lachish: The sanctuary and the residency (Lachish V), Gateway Publishers, 1975, ISBN 0-914594-02-8
  11. ↑ D. Ussishkin, Excavations at Tel Lachish - 1973–1977, Preliminary Report, Tel Aviv, vol. 5, pp. 1-97, 1978
  12. ↑ D. Ussishkin, Excavations at Tel Lachish 1978–1983: Second Preliminary Report, Tel Aviv, vol. 10, pp. 97-175, 1983
  13. ↑ D. Ussishkin, Excavations and Restoration Work at Tel Lachish: 1985–1994, Third Preliminary Report, Tel Aviv, vol. 23, pp. 3-60, 1996
  14. ↑ W. F. Albright, The Oldest Hebrew Letters: The Lachish Ostraca, Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, no. 70, pp. 11-1, 1938
  15. ↑ W. F. Albright, A Reëxamination of the Lachish Letters, Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, no. 73, pp. 16-21, 1939
  16. ↑ D. Ussishkin, Royal Judean Storage Jars and Private Seal Impressions, Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, vol. 223, pp. 1-13, 1976
  17. ↑ D. Ussishkin, The Destruction of Lachish by Sennacherib and the Dating of the Royal Judean Storage Jars, Tel Aviv, vol. 4, pp. 28-60, 1977

See also

References

  • Barnett, R. D. "The Siege of Lachish." Israel Exploration Journal, vol. 8, pp. 161–164, 1958
  • Bliss, Frederick. Numerous artifact drawings, also "Layer by Layer" drawings of Tell el-Hesy. Also an original attempt of the only el Amarna letter found at site, Amarna Letters, EA 333. A Mound of Many Cities; or Tell El Hesy Excavated, by Frederick Jones Bliss, PhD., explorer to the Fund, 2nd Edition, Revised. (The Committee of the Palestine Exploration Fund.) c 1898.
  • Grena, G.M. (2004). LMLK--A Mystery Belonging to the King vol. 1. Redondo Beach, California: 4000 Years of Writing History. ISBN 0-9748786-0-X. 
  • Lawrence T. Geraty, Archaeology and the Bible at Hezekiah's Lachish, Andrews University Seminary Studies, vol. 25, no. 1, pp. 27–37, 1987
  • Arlene M. Rosen, Environmental Change and Settlement at Tel Lachish Israel, Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, no. 263, pp. 55–60, 1986
  • D. Ussishkin, The Renewed Archaeological Excavations at Lachish (1973–1994), Volumes I-V, Monographs of the Institute of Archaeology vol. 22, Tel Aviv University, 2004, ISBN 9652660175

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