Shiloh Monumental Iron I Building
East-west structure on the northern platform proposed as the tabernacle's resting place
Found 2019 — Scott Stripling, Associates for Biblical Research (ABR) Shiloh Excavations
Where Tel Shiloh (Khirbet Seilun), central hill country (West Bank (Palestinian Territories, Israeli-administered))
Dates from c. 1177–1050 BCE (excavators' dating) · Iron Age I · Judges and Eli; the tabernacle at Shiloh
Now at In situ at Tel Shiloh archaeological park
How Shiloh Monumental Iron I Building was found
Walls of a large east-west building came to light on the northern side of the tell from 2019 onward. The southern wall, completing the plan, was exposed in the 2026 (eighth) season; a multi-roomed bent-axis gate on the north was traced in 2025–2026.
What it is
A large stone building oriented east-west, with an internal wall dividing it roughly one-third from the western end and an overall long-to-short ratio the excavators describe as about 2:1. It sits inside the Middle Bronze fortification line on the north side of the tell, in the same general area where altar horns, ceramic pomegranates and a murex shell were recovered. Pottery in and around it is dated by ABR to Iron Age I.
Why it matters for the Bible
The tabernacle (mishkan) was a tent, so no one expects to dig it up; what the excavators claim is a stone building whose orientation and proportions echo the tabernacle's Holy Place and Holy of Holies (Exodus 26). If that reading holds, this would be the first architectural footprint of the sanctuary where the ark stood for roughly three centuries (Joshua 18:1; 1 Samuel 1–4). Critics point out that the building's plan is still being published, that the cult objects were found out of primary context, and that earlier excavations (Danish 1926–32, Finkelstein 1981–84) found Iron I Shiloh to be a modest village with storage buildings rather than a temple. Headlines calling this 'the ark's location' go well beyond what the stones can say.
The Hebrew word: mish-KAHN
מִשְׁכָּן
מִשְׁכָּן is pronounced mish-KAHN and means dwelling place, tabernacle (Strong's H4908).
People this discovery connects to
- Eli — עֵלִי (ay-LEE) — ascended, exalted
- Samuel — שְׁמוּאֵל (she-moo-EL) — heard of God / name of God
Places
- Shiloh — שִׁלֹה (shee-LOH) — tranquil (uncertain)
Events
Setting up the tent of meeting at Shiloh (Joshua 18:1) · Hannah's prayer and Samuel's childhood at the sanctuary · Loss of the ark to the Philistines (1 Samuel 4)
Shiloh Monumental Iron I Building in Scripture
Joshua 18:1 Israel assembles at Shiloh and sets up the tent of meeting there; this building is proposed as the platform where that tent stood.
1 Samuel 3:3 Samuel sleeps 'in the temple (heikhal) of YHVH where the ark of Elohim was' — a wording that suggests a built structure at Shiloh.
Psalms 78:60 YHVH 'forsook the tabernacle of Shiloh,' looking back on the sanctuary's end.
Questions people ask
What is Shiloh Monumental Iron I Building?
A large stone building oriented east-west, with an internal wall dividing it roughly one-third from the western end and an overall long-to-short ratio the excavators describe as about 2:1. It sits inside the Middle Bronze fortification line on the north side of the tell, in the same general area where altar horns, ceramic pomegranates and a murex shell were recovered. Pottery in and around it is dated by ABR to Iron Age I.
When was Shiloh Monumental Iron I Building discovered?
It was found in 2019 by Scott Stripling, Associates for Biblical Research (ABR) Shiloh Excavations, at Tel Shiloh (Khirbet Seilun), central hill country.
Where is Shiloh Monumental Iron I Building today?
In situ at Tel Shiloh archaeological park.
Which Bible verses does Shiloh Monumental Iron I Building relate to?
Joshua 18:1, 1 Samuel 3:3, Psalms 78:60.
Is Shiloh Monumental Iron I Building authentic?
The building's existence and Iron I date are not in doubt, but its identification as the tabernacle platform or 'the ark's location' is the excavators' interpretation and has not been accepted by the wider field; final publication is pending.
Related discoveries
- מִשְׁכָּןShiloh (Tel Shiloh / Khirbet Seilun)Iron I storerooms, collared-rim jars, and an altar horn at the home of the Tabernacle
- קֶרֶןShiloh Altar HornsThree horned corner stones of a four-horned altar, found in secondary use
- שִׁלֹהShiloh's Burnt Layer and Sacred-Precinct WallThe fiery end of Iron I Shiloh around 1050 BCE — the aftermath of Eben-ezer?
- אוֹצָרShiloh Storage Rooms and Collar-Rim JarsPillared storehouses and pithoi along the northern wall — the sanctuary's pantry
- שׁוֹק הַיָּמִיןShiloh Animal Bone DepositsTens of thousands of bones from sheep, goats and cattle — with a bias toward the right side
- רִמּוֹןShiloh Ceramic PomegranateA clay pomegranate from the sacred area of Iron Age Shiloh
Sources
- Jerusalem Post, 'Has the Ark of the Covenant been found? Monumental structure unearthed at Tel Shiloh' (Aug 2025)
- Arkeonews, 'New Walls at Shiloh Reveal Clues to One of the Bible's Earliest Sacred Sites' (2026 season)
- Bible Archaeology Report, 'Three Things in Shiloh Samuel Likely Saw' (2023)
- ABR, Research and Reports on Shiloh