Radiocarbon Re-dating of Jerusalem's Eastern Wall
The 2024 PNAS study that moved a City of David wall from Hezekiah's reign back to Uzziah's
Found 2024 — Johanna Regev and Elisabetta Boaretto (Weizmann Institute) with Yuval Gadot (Tel Aviv University), Yiftah Shalev and Joe Uziel (Israel Antiquities Authority)
Where City of David and Givati Parking Lot, Yerushalayim (Jerusalem) (Israel)
Dates from Wall built c. 790–750 BCE; samples span 1200–586 BCE · Iron Age IIA–B · Uzziah (Azariah) and Jotham, kings of Judah
Now at Wall in situ on the eastern slope of the City of David; data published in PNAS
How Radiocarbon Re-dating of Jerusalem's Eastern Wall was found
103 radiocarbon samples of seeds and other short-lived material were taken from sealed layers across the City of David and Givati excavations and matched to tree-ring calibration data. A thick wall on the eastern slope, long assigned to Chizkiyahu's siege preparations, returned dates in the early-to-mid 8th century BCE.
What it is
Not a single object but a dating study. The key structure is a fortification wall on the eastern slope of the City of David, several metres thick, previously assumed to be part of Chizkiyahu's (Hezekiah's) defences against Sennacherib. The dates place its construction decades earlier, and also show dense settlement on the ridge in the 12th–10th centuries and a westward growth of the city by the 9th century.
Why it matters for the Bible
The Bible credits Uzziah with towers and fortifications in Yerushalayim and with a great earthquake in his days. The new dates fit that picture better than the old Hezekiah assumption, and the same study found a mid-8th-century repair to a large building in the Givati area that could reflect earthquake damage. The study also challenges the view that Yerushalayim was a small village in David's time, though Israel Finkelstein and others have questioned parts of the method.
The Hebrew word: choh-MAH
חוֹמָה
חוֹמָה is pronounced choh-MAH and means city wall (Strong's H2346).
People this discovery connects to
- Uzziah — עֻזִּיָּהוּ (oo-zee-YAH-hoo) — my strength is YHVH
- Jotham — יוֹתָם (yoh-TAHM) — YHVH is perfect
Places
- Jerusalem — יְרוּשָׁלַיִם (ye-roo-shah-LAH-yim) — foundation of peace
Events
Uzziah's building projects · The earthquake in the days of Uzziah
Radiocarbon Re-dating of Jerusalem's Eastern Wall in Scripture
2 Kings 15:13 First mention of Uzziah in Scripture.
Amos 1:1 'Two years before the earthquake' in Uzziah's days; the study links a mid-8th-century repair phase to that event.
2 Chronicles 26:9 Uzziah builds towers in Yerushalayim at the Corner Gate, Valley Gate and the angle; the re-dated wall falls in his reign.
Questions people ask
What is Radiocarbon Re-dating of Jerusalem's Eastern Wall?
Not a single object but a dating study. The key structure is a fortification wall on the eastern slope of the City of David, several metres thick, previously assumed to be part of Chizkiyahu's (Hezekiah's) defences against Sennacherib. The dates place its construction decades earlier, and also show dense settlement on the ridge in the 12th–10th centuries and a westward growth of the city by the 9th century.
When was Radiocarbon Re-dating of Jerusalem's Eastern Wall discovered?
It was found in 2024 by Johanna Regev and Elisabetta Boaretto (Weizmann Institute) with Yuval Gadot (Tel Aviv University), Yiftah Shalev and Joe Uziel (Israel Antiquities Authority), at City of David and Givati Parking Lot, Yerushalayim (Jerusalem).
Where is Radiocarbon Re-dating of Jerusalem's Eastern Wall today?
Wall in situ on the eastern slope of the City of David; data published in PNAS.
Which Bible verses does Radiocarbon Re-dating of Jerusalem's Eastern Wall relate to?
2 Kings 15:13, Amos 1:1, 2 Chronicles 26:9.
Is Radiocarbon Re-dating of Jerusalem's Eastern Wall authentic?
The radiocarbon data are published and peer-reviewed (PNAS, April 2024). The historical conclusions, especially the size of 10th-century Jerusalem and the Uzziah attribution, are contested by Israel Finkelstein and others who question sample contexts and calibration choices.
Related discoveries
- יוֹתָם'Jotham' Seal from Tell el-KheleifehA copper seal ring naming Yotam from the Red Sea port of Elath
- רַעַשׁThe Earthquake of Uzziah's DaysCracked walls and tilted floors across Israel dated to Amos's 'two years before the earthquake'
- עֻזִּיָּהוּUzziah Tablet'Here were brought the bones of Uzziah, king of Judah. Do not open.'
- יַבְנֶהYavneh 'Temple Hill' Favissa: Philistine Cult StandsA single pit with over a hundred clay shrine-stands from Philistine Jabneh
- חֻרְבָּןJerusalem's 586 BCE Destruction LayerBurnt Room, House of Ahiel, Givati ash and arrowheads — the fall of Jerusalem in the ground
- מֶלֶךְ יְהוּדָהBulla of Ahaz, King of Judah'Belonging to Ahaz (son of) Jehotham, king of Judah' — a royal seal impression with no findspot
Sources
- Regev, Gadot, Roth, Shalev, Uziel, Boaretto et al., 'Radiocarbon chronology of Iron Age Jerusalem reveals calibration offsets and architectural developments', PNAS 121 (2024)
- Haaretz, 'Jerusalem in King David's Time Was Much Larger Than Previously Thought' (Apr 2024)
- Israel Finkelstein, 'Observations on the article Regev et al.' (May 2024)
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