"Then they built up the City of David with a high, strong wall and strong towers, and it became their citadel" (I Maccabees 1:33). In: E. Meiron (ed.), City of David Studies of Ancient Jerusalem 11 (2016), pp. 19*-29*. (original) (raw)
Related papers
New Evidence for the Dates of the Walls of Jerusalem in the Second Half of the Second Century BC
Electrum, Journal of Ancient History, 2019
Alongside a critique of a new analysis of Josephus' long account of Antiochus VII Sidetes' siege of Jerusalem in his Antiquities, this paper presents new archaeological support for the conclusion that, at the time of the siege, the "First Wall" enclosed the Southwestern Hill of the city. Further examination of the stratigraphic summaries of the Hellenistic fortification system at the Giv'ati Parking Lot proposes that the system constituted part of the western city-wall for the City of David hill. The addition of a lower glacis to the wall was made in advance of Sidetes' siege. In other words, in addition to the "First Wall" protecting the western side of an expanded Jerusalem, John Hyrcanus also reinforced the City of David's wall, as an additional barrier to the Seleucid forces. Later, after the high priest's capitulation to Sidetes (132 BC) and the king's death in Media (129 BC), Hyrcanus again reinforced the same fortification with an upper glacis, which never was tested.
THE SOUTHERN WALL OF THE TEMPLE MOUNT AND ITS CORNERS: PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE
THE SOUTHERN WALL OF THE TEMPLE MOUNT AND ITS CORNERS: PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE, 2023
No visuals or plans of the Temple Mount’s construction project have come down to us from antiquity and conjectures of the size of the sacred enclosure by historians, theologians and even archaeologists over the past 150 years have gone in numerous directions (see, for example, Ritmeyer 2006, with extensive bibliography on pp. 402–411). Our opinion is that the sacred space, at the size it attained during the days of King Herod the Great, must have included the architectural envelope that surrounds the Temple Mount proper and that the system of entrances, gateways and roads leading to the compound, as well as the outer faces of the compound walls, were all part of the sacred enclosure. The chapters in this book present the archaeological evidence of the excavations cited, follow-up research and our analysis. The main objective of the present volume is to publish the results of various excavations that have been conducted in different locations along the walls. Moreover, we attempt to expand the view regarding the Southern Wall and the area close by, while widely referring to its physical aspects, and by doing so, assess the architectural changes that have occurred in the Southern Wall from the late Second Temple (Early Roman) period through to the end of the Early Islamic period. This book is divided into five parts:
Early Islamic and Medieval City Walls of Jerusalem in Light of New Discoveries
Jerusalem's present city wall was constructed by the Ottoman sultan Suleiman the Magnificent during the second quarter of the 16th century. The wall, about 4.5 km long, is in a good state of preservation and incorporates six monumental city gates, on which the Sultan's building inscriptions were preserved. A common legend recounts that the two architects of the wall were killed by the sultan for not incorporating Mount Zion within the circumference of the wall. Nevertheless, archaeological remains indicate that the route of the Ottoman wall was dictated not only by the will of the sultan or his architects but also by topographic considerations and by the size of the city when the walls were built. Remains of the stillvisible medieval fortifications, which the Ottoman wall followed, also played an important role in the decisions of its builders.
Bagh-e Nazar, 2020
Problem statement: The visible remnants of Rab’e Rashidi in Tabriz, as a fortified site at the present time, are curtain walls and towers. Imagined as an Ilkhanid observatory and recorded as the artillery tower built by Shah Abbās the Great during his 1603 AD campaign, the great southern tower of Rab’e Rashidi is located at the southern curtain wall. The recent field studies on the structure of this tower have questioned its function for artillery tower. Therefore, the basic questions proposed by the authors are related to the relative dating, function and historical presence of this tower in Rashidiyya. Research objectives: The aim of this research study is the systematic understanding of the age and function of this monument as a guide to proper planning of its restoration and conservation. Research method: The analytical approach to architecture, field studies of structure and physical setting of tower, in addition to the history of ordnance in Safavid and Ottoman armies are the basic research methods were applied in this study. Conclusion: The tower has been built by the plan and order of Cigala Joseph Sinan Pasha (Zigala Bassa Capitano del Mare) the Ottoman ruler of Tabriz (1585-1603). Strongly has not been affected by 7. 7 earthquake of Tabriz 1780, the basic function of such a great tower is not simply confined to artillery tower, but instead is supposed to be a stronghold to deploy a musketeer company of Ottoman Janissaries to cover 180o fire wall for southern lowland areas of the southern curtain wall, including the western upper gate, two water wells at the east of tower, and also the northern bank of Mehrānrūd River and hills of Valyānkūh. Moreover, adobe, mud-brick, clay and wattle & daubed structures visible throughout top of the great tower and across the small towers and curtain walls are the same remnants of quickly reconstructed and repaired Fort of Rashidiyya ordered by the Safavid Shah Abbās the Great, in 1610.
The fortification wall of Chaleion: the current state of research
2019
Picturesque Galaxidi, with its good harbor (eulimenos politeia) and rich nautical tradition, was constructed on the site of ancient Chaleion. The continuous habitation of the site as well as the fact that ancient stone blocks were used to build the modern harbor facilities have contributed to the extensive destruction of the ancient structures, and in particular of the fortifications. These last, which were likely founded in the late 4th century BC, are preserved in fragments among the modern city. This paper gathers the results of previous and more recent studies, mainly of a rescue nature. Its aim is to graphically reconstruct, with the greatest possible degree of accuracy, the course of the walls, and to understand the defensive function of the fortification in the context of contemporary siege operations.
2019 The Line of the Southern City Wall of Jerusalem in the Early Periods
ANCIENT JERUSALEM REVEALED- Archaeological Discoveries, 1998–2018, 2019
This study presents archaeological and historical conclusions based upon the excavations, which uncovered remains of the city wall from the Iron Age II, Late Hellenistic–Early Roman (Second Temple) period and the Byzantine period, The excavations located along the upper part of the southern slope of Mt. Zion, Jerusalem an area that today is outside the Ottoman walls of the Old City.