Our new hire car was in the form of a 2wd Mitsubishi ASX. Unlike our Hyundai i10 from Europcar, this one was actually pretty good! It only had 15,000 kilometers on the clock and we would add nearly 3,000 more by the time we were done with it nine days later, taking her to places she never thought she would go (and where Budget would prefer we didn't). To get to our first location of the day, Lachish, we would take a less than direct route from Ben Gurion Airport in order to avoid the very expensive toll road, route 6. Budget had quoted us $50US just for the privilege of using it, plus the actual tolls on top of that. Despite the extremely high cost of fuel in Israel, it still didn't justify the toll road for saving only half an hour. We took Route 1 towards Jerusalem, then south on roads 38 and 35. One of the places we drove past at around the midway point was the Valley of Elah, the site of one of the most famous battles in history between the Philistines and the Israelites. Most of you may know this part of history as the battle of David and Goliath. As we were passing by Beit Guvrin National Park (on the list for next time), we stumbled across an old looking building on the side of the road and decided to investigate.
Unfortunately, I haven't been able to find any information on this particular building however it appears to be one of a number of public buildings that were abandoned in the 1960's. The building's exterior looks ancient with the typical rough cut stones, however the interior has a much more modern concrete rendering and looks like an old barracks or storehouse. As we were trying to be careful with the time we had, we pressed on to Lachish and after driving around a Kibbutz for a few minutes, eventually found the entrance to the Tel Lachish National Park.
Tel Lachish
A visit here was suggested to me by the reverend of our church, Gavin Ward, during the planning phase of this trip. This seemed like a good idea as it not only hold much historical interest, but was also on the way to our main destination of Beer She'va. Tel Lachish is the site of an ancient city. Today the 12 acre mound is under the jurisdiction of the Israel Nature & Parks Authority and a large visitors center is currently under construction. Upon its completion, it will most likely be available by admission only. The good news is, many archaeological digs are still under way and many new exciting things are being discovered every year.
Lachish has a very long history, dating all the way back to the Neolithic period around 5500BC, however a permanent settlement didn't begin until 3000BC. The Canaanites moved in at around 2000BC and 300 years later, Lachish had grown to become a major city. Less than two centuries later it was destroyed by fire. In 1550 the area fell under Egyptian rule and was rebuilt. The city flourished, but was again destroyed by fire around 1150BC after the Egyptian's gradually lost power. The Canaanites then had a go at rebuilding the city and this time incorporated two huge temples in its design. Only 20 years later, however... you guessed it... burned to the ground. The whole place was destroyed once more. It is widely believed that most of these fires were caused by attacks by a nomadic gang, ironically known as the Sea People, although some may have been caused from rebellious uprisings from within.
The next major point in its history, as well as the most documented, began when it was part of the Kingdom of Judah. The city was not only rebuilt, but greatly expanded and it became second in status only to Jerusalem itself (I'm guessing they fitted every single structure with fire supression equipment as well). Lachish was the midway point between the Mediterranean coast and Jerusalem and due to its strategic position, became the most heavily fortified of all cities guarding the valleys along this path.
When Hezekiah became King in 715BC, he initiated a number of radical religious reforms, including the destruction of religious idols that the Israelites had unfortunately incorporated into their lives. He also formed new alliances with other Kingdoms, such as Egypt, and took back land from others, notably the Philistines. Then he decided he no longer wanted to pay tribute to the Assyrians anymore. The Assyrian king (Sennacherib) was so furious, he deleted Hezekiah from his facebook account and launched a full scale invasion into Judah. Samaria fell first before he turned his attention to the cities in the Levant. Lachish was invaded and largely destroyed before they immediately moved onto Jerusalem. They were unsuccessful here however, as Hezekiah placed his faith in God and most of the Assyrian army was wiped out mysteriously overnight. These events are recorded in three places in the Old Testament of the Bible; 2 Kings, Isaiah and 2 Chronicles.
The Assyrian empire held onto Lachish, but this too fell when the Babylonian's, under King Nebuchadnezzer II, launched a successful offensive destroying what was left of the Kingdom of Judah in 586BC. The Jewish inhabitants were all exiled to Babylon until 538BC when the Babylonian empire fell to the Persians. Some Jews returned to Lachish and the city was built with fortifications for a final time. It was then destroyed for good by Alexander the Great in the second half of the 3rd century BC.
The path into the site is on the south side and follows the same route as one of two original main roads leading into the city. It was designed to follow the left hand side of the city walls, allowing the defending soldiers to be able to use their weapons more effectively if they were to be dispatched outside the perimeter. As the south side face was less steep than the north, the land at the base of the walls was dug away to act as a further natural barrier.
As this wall was now considered impregnable, it was also less fortified than the rest of the city. When the Assyrians arrived with feelings of ill-intent, they simply put the land back, constructing a 70 meter wide by 16 meter high stone ramp leading up to the city. This enabled them to bring up battering rams to breach the walls and take the city with considerable ease. The ramp comprises of most of the earth seen in the photo above.
A number of building foundations can be found over most of the mound. Many of these belong to houses and the remains of the old palace (and later a large residence) are easily visible in the center of the city. The ruins shown above belong to the base of the original gate house tower, almost 3,000 years old. Many of the remains of the left over buildings are no more than a meter high and a select few have been restored by adding layers to show how the building would have looked. (a painted line shows where the original remnants end and the newly restored section begins).
A large well, around 40 meters deep, and dating back over 3000 years ago was located on the northern side of the city. Today it is the home to dozens of roosting pigeons.
Just south of the well is the 'Ghost tree' claimed to be around 2,000 years old. The species is Ziziphus spina-christi, aka Christ's thorn jujube, and believed to be the same type of tree used to fabricate Jesus' crown of thorns. Due to its age, it is now supported by steel beams.
Being spring time, the entire site is blanketed with thick green grass which makes some of the lower profile remains of the city invisible. It is, however, extremely pretty and many types of flowers make the sight even more colourful.
"Then Joshua and all Israel with him moved on from Libnah to Lachish; he took up positions against it and attacked it. The Lord gave Lachish into Israel’s hands, and Joshua took it on the second day. The city and everyone in it he put to the sword, just as he had done to Libnah." - Joshua 10:31-32
To get to our next site, Tel Be'er Sheva, I decided to avoid Route 6 again. My plan was to drive to Kiryat Gat, grabbing some lunch on the way through and find a cheaper alternative. We located a packed cafe in a large shopping center, usually a good sign that the food is decent. This worked out well for a couple of reasons. The food and the fresh mint lemonade, common in Israel, was indeed excellent. More importantly, our waiter also gave us the very helpful advice that Route 6, at least down the south, was free and really the only option unless I fancied a huge deviation via the Gaza strip. Despite my love of all things military, we hadn't packed our Kevlar underwear and opted for the free and quicker option, arriving just before 1pm.
Be'er Sheva
Tel Be'er Sheva was an ancient city in the Negev desert, spanning an area of around 45 acres. It is positioned 4 kilometers to the east of the large modern city of Be'er Sheva at coordinates 31°14'41.31"N 34°50'26.40"E. The mound is about 20 meters higher than its surrounds, giving excellent views in all directions. This site has been heavily excavated since the 1970s and continues to this day. It is one of three tels (or hills) that are mentioned in the bible that are still in existence, the others being Megiddo near Afula and Hazor in the Galilee. Tel Be'er Sheva is administered by the Israel Nature and Parks Authority and entry is by admission. We used our defective tickets to gain access as per usual. There are 16 key points of interest within and all can be seen within a couple of hours.
Tel Be'er Sheva is famously known amongst Jews, Muslims and Christians as being the place where Abraham lived, afterall he was the patriach of all these three religions. It is mentioned in the bible no less than 33 times and it is here where Abraham and Abimelech formed an alliance. Abraham gave Abimelech seven sheep and in return, a well that had been claimed by some of Abimelech's men was returned to him (Genesis 21). This event is also suggested to be where the name Be'er Sheva comes from; 'Be'er' meaning 'well' and 'Sheva' meaning 'oath', or the number 'seven', a reference to the seven sheep given by Abraham. The well is outside the city walls near the outer gate and is one of two in the city.
Evidence of human presence has been found dating back to ~4000BC, however there is a gap of around 2500 years until the iron age (also known as the Israelite period). The site was continuously inhabited for 500 years, going through several improvements and extensions during this time.
The Persians had a presence here during the 5th & 4th centuries BC, then the Greeks between the 1st century BC - 1st century AD and the Roman's immediately after, lasting until the 3rd century AD. The next and final permanent settlement occurred during the Early Arab conquest and they were here during the 7th and 8th centuries.
Tel Be'er Sheva also has an ANZAC connection to the very place we were standing. The hill was occupied by the Ottoman Turkish army and used as a staging ground for an attack on the Suez canal. As the British army advanced from Egypt, the Turk's fortified the hill with artillery, but an ANZAC infantry unit successfully took the position on 31 October 1917, becoming the first successful Australian victory during the campaign.
The most significant find to date is a four-horned altar. Such was the significance of this find, that the original was sent to the Israel Museum in Jerusalem and what we have at Be'er Sheva today is only a replica which is located near the entrance of the park. This altar was the first of its type to be excavated in Israel and few have been found since. The stones were found incorporated into the wall of a storehouse and provides evidence of the dramatic shift in the kingdom's ritual customs. A four horned altar is mentioned in the book of Exodus and many other places in the Bible.
Like many large cities, Tel Be'er Sheva was heavily fortified. The most vulnerable face was along the southern wall and an outer wall was built to protect the main gate into the city. The remains of the outer gate can be seen in the photo below. This wall was in use from ~900 BC.
The photo below shows the governors palace, the largest building (naturally) in the rather cramped city. It is referred to in the bible as being the city prefect's (or governor's) house. The palace backed onto the main city square, which was the only open area in the entire city, right in front of the main gate. It featured an entrance corridor, two paved halls inside a larger ceremonial wing, two residences, a storeroom and a kitchen.
Various other buildings including the residential areas, a large city storehouse, market place and streets have been unearthed. A few of these buildings have been partially rebuilt and a painted line indicates where the original and restored sections are. Some areas have had concrete applied to hold some of the paths and stones together, but this is unobtrusive and tactfully applied.
The site has a new observation tower in the center which gives a great overview of the city. Even better, the railway line to Dimona passes right out the front, although traffic is sparse and nothing was seen. The valley seen in the photo below is where the Australian light horse passed through to get to Be'er Sheva. You can also see how unnaturally green this area is at the moment!
By far the most impressive sight is the huge water system. This was built during the city's first fortifications and was to ensure the people had a water source in the event of coming under attack.
It consists of three major parts. There is a 17 meter deep shaft lined with stones and a flight of stairs along its sides leading to the reservoir. The reservoir is divided into five separate rooms, which were essentially supporting walls, and has a water capacity of around 700 cubic meters. It was dug out of the chalk rock and given a thick coat of plaster to avoid seepage. Today visitors are welcome to walk through it and see some handprints of the original builders. Amazing! Maybe the handprints I made in the Gisborne council's footpaths back in 1988 will one day be seen as a great archaeological find? I think not. The reservoir was filled from a cleverly designed winding feeder channel that passed through much of the city.
The exit out of the water system takes you back towards the exit of the park. Before we left, Vinci again tried to befriend some local cats, but as usual they just gave her the cold shoulder and carried on licking their backsides.
"So Abraham returned unto his young men, and they rose up and went together to Beersheba; and Abraham dwelt at Beersheba." - Genesis 22:19
Lachish - another view of the Assyrian ramp
Lachish - mustard flower
Be'er Sheva - Remains from a house with a swimming pool on the western side of the city
Be'er Sheva - Some of the plaster lined walls of the huge water reservoir
Continue to Part 10 - click here