Two buildings found in excavations by Jerusalem archaeologists are thought to be the remains of the palace of the most famous king in Islamic, Christian and Jewish history, namely King David or David who is also a prophet.
The conclusion came after archaeologists carried out excavations at the site they believe to be the Judean stronghold of Shaaraim in 2013. Shaaraim, now known as Khirbet Qeiyafa, is the location believed to be where David defeated Goliath, as recounted in the Bible.
Quoted from National Geographic, Sunday (11/14/2021) Khirbet Qeiyafa is the site of an ancient fortress city overlooking the Elah Valley and dating from the first half of the 10th century BC. The ruins of the fort were discovered in 2007, near the Israeli city of Beit Shemesh, 30 km from Jerusalem.
"To date, these ruins are the best evidence for dismantling the fortified city of King David. This discovery is irrefutable evidence of the existence of a center of power in Judah during the reign of King David," said Professor Yosef Garfinkel of Hebrew University and Saar Ganor who led the excavation project. .
According to him, this site became a strategic location in the biblical Kingdom of Judah, on the main road from Philistia and the coastal plain to Jerusalem and Hebron in the hills.
Even before the excavations carried out by Garfinkel and his team, visitors to Khirbet Qeiyafa could see the massive city walls, 2-3 meters high, covering the hilltops. The city wall limits an area of 2.3 hectares with a total length of about 700 meters.
"Due to the local topography, only the outer surface of the wall was exposed, the interior was buried under archaeological remains," Garfinkel said.
He said the walls of the building were made of cyclopean stone, while the top was built with medium-sized stone. Two city gates were in sight before the excavation, one to the south and one to the west.
The main purpose of the excavations was to expose most of the Iron Age cities that are radiometrically dated to the late eleventh and early tenth centuries BC. To date, the site covering an area of 3,500 square meters has been excavated and two gates, fortification walls, settlements, shrines, stables and an administrative building complex at the top of the site have been opened.
In addition, layers from the Late-Early Hellenistic Persian period begin to unfold. This layer dates back to 350-270 BC, based on coins found in 2010-2011.
Garfinkel and Ganor discovered two buildings dating back to the 10th century BC in Jerusalem. One structure is identified as David's palace, while the other is thought to be a large storehouse belonging to the palace.
Around the palace, there are rooms with various installations such as pottery vessels and broken marble vessels. This finding is also evidence that at that time the Egyptians were familiar with the metal industry.
While this finding may sound surprising, not all historians agree. Some historians say that the palace and the kingdom never existed. If there is, it is probably no bigger than Jerusalem.
Prof Aren Meir from Bar Ilan University agreed that this site is an important discovery. But according to him, archaeologists rely too much on the Bible as a source of evidence.
"Can we put together an argument about the kingdoms of David and Solomon? To me, this seems too grandiose," said Meir.
Meanwhile, the Israel Antiquities Authority hopes this discovery can make Khirbet Qeiyafa a national park that is able to invite tourists to come and learn about royal life during the reign of King David.