Highway Through History

A Judean settlement was recently uncovered east of Tel Beth Shemesh, about 20 miles west of Jerusalem. Dating from the end of the Iron Age, the findings have upended our understanding of the Kingdom of Judah under Assyrian rule in the seventh century B.C.E. It had been assumed that the ancient city of Beth Shemesh—known from the biblical story of the return of the Ark of the Covenant—was abandoned following its destruction by King Sennacherib, in 701 B.C.E. New discoveries, however, reveal that the city was reestablished and became an important center. These discoveries received much attention—almost as much […]