Massive wooden beams charred by the fire that destroyed Jerusalem and the First Temple were unearthed during a recent dig at the Jerusalem Walls National Park in the City of David, the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) reported Monday.
The First Temple, which was built by King Solomon, was destroyed in 586 BCE by Nebuchadnezzar II, the second king of the Neo-Babylonian Empire.
IAA and Tel Aviv University archaeologists discovered the burnt beams inside a building that had collapsed in the fire, the IAA said.
“The beams appear to have served as the roof of an inner courtyard in a building from the First Temple period,” IAA excavation director Efrat Bocher said.
Plaster that had melted off the building’s walls, sealing the wood beneath it, had likely preserved the beams for 2,600 years, she said.
Beams offer significant research potential
The IAA’s Dr. Johanna Regev, who is studying the beams, said: “It is very rare in Israel to find wood with such a large number of growth rings. Here in the City of David, we found thick beams with many rings, offering significant research potential, with more growth rings enabling higher dating resolution.”
“Until now, we could date finds within a range of hundreds of years,” she said. “Now, we can attain much greater precision, narrowing the dating range down to as little as 10 years.”
According to the IAA, Jerusalem’s returning residents, as they began to rebuild the city, probably made a deliberate decision to preserve the memory of the destruction by leaving behind remains that tell the story of the catastrophe.
“The concept of a landscape of memory is familiar from many cultures around the world,” said Dr. Yiftah Shalev, who is directing the excavation on behalf of the IAA alongside Prof. Yuval Gadot of Tel Aviv University.
“Preserving memory is a human need, seeking to preserve what once existed,” he said. “Here we see it in its clearest form: a deliberate choice to leave ruins in place as a testament to the destruction and build the new layer over them.”
Evidence of the city's ancient past
Bocher said: “We are just before Tisha B’Av. This discovery makes you feel that you are witnessing the very moment of destruction, the moment when it all happened. It’s deeply moving.”
Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu said: “Jerusalem’s soil continues to provide tangible evidence of the city’s ancient past. The wooden beams burned in the destruction of the First Temple stand as a powerful reminder of the Jewish people’s presence in Jerusalem some 2,600 years ago.”
“On the eve of Tisha B’Av, this discovery underscores that our connection to Jerusalem is rooted not only in faith, but also in history, archaeology, and collective memory,” he said. “It is our responsibility to continue uncovering, preserving, and passing this heritage on to future generations.”