Structures believed to be around thousands of years ago were discovered in the City of David National Park. However, the discovery baffled experts as they couldn't explain its purpose.
Ancient Structures Discovered in Jerusalem
In the City of David National Park, the IAA and Tel Aviv University excavations have found two constructions roughly 10 meters apart. Still, they may have been part of a single, larger installation. The Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) claims that two "unique" ancient buildings discovered in Jerusalem, whose function is still unknown, are perplexing specialists.
The network of channels etched into the rock is estimated to be over 3,000 years old. According to a statement released by the IAA on Facebook Wednesday, the installations are the first to be found in Israel.
The scholars claimed that the buildings were used throughout the time that the city's First Temple is believed to have existed. During the reign of the ancient Judean rulers, the Temple and royal palace were located close by, and the channels were strategically placed nearby. This suggests that the installations were somehow connected to the economics of these important institutions.
Yuval Gadot of Tel Aviv University's Department of Archaeology and Ancient Near Eastern Civilizations said that when they discovered the second installation to the south, the mystery only further deepened.
Yiftah Shalev, a senior researcher at the IAA, added that they looked at the installation and realized they came across something unique. However, they didn't know how to interpret it since it was something they had never seen before in Israel, and the time it was installed also remained unclear.
To check for any residues in the rock or soil that are not visible to the unaided eye and to aid in our understanding of what passed through or was in the channels, the team dispatched a number of experts to the location. Shalev said they also enlisted the assistance of the police forensic section and its research partners worldwide to see if there were any organic remnants or signs of blood. However, so far, their efforts have yet to pay off.
Nevertheless, researchers could pinpoint the date when the installations were abandoned. According to them, it happened at the end of the 9th century B.C. during the reigns of the Judean kings Joash and Amaziah in the Bible.
Purpose of the Channel Installation
Although the structures' intended use is still unknown, Shalev suggested that it is probable that they were built to soak products rather than drain liquids in the northern installation.
For instance, the flax must be softened by soaking it for a lengthy time before making linen. According to Shalev, another theory is that the channels contained dates left out to be roasted by the sun to generate silan, a form of date honey. This idea is supported by similar installations found in far-off locales like Oman, Bahrain, and Iran.
According to the researcher, archaeologists will soon collect more soil samples from the sites to find information that could assist them in solving the mystery.
RELATED ARTICLE: 1,600-year-old Roman Dodecahedron Unearthed in Belgium: What Were Those Ancient Objects Used For?
Check out more news and information on Archaeology in Science Times.
