Image Details

Balage Balogh/archaeologyillustrated.com

Merchants from across the Near East bought and sold wares at the Ashkelon marketplace. Phoenician ships drew near the beach as their cargo was unloaded and brought to shore by lighters. From there, it was a short walk from the beach to the market. On South Street, merchants weighed silver as they determined the value of sacks of wheat brought from Judah. Imported Nile perch and sea bass were peddled nearby. On the rooftop of the grain shop, incense from Arabia was burned on an altar, an offering to the Philistine gods.