Has the kingdom of King David been found? Expert claims five cities were ruled by Biblical figure

By William On Jul 13, 2023

An archaeologist claims that the ruins of five fortified cities outside Jerusalem belonged to the same kingdom ruled by the biblical figure of King David.

Yosef Garfinkle of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem believes the cities date back to the early 10th century BC, some 200 years earlier than previously thought, placing them in the time of David.

Garfinkel’s study, published in June, describes the cities all having two parallel walls in the center and organized roads, suggesting the network was connected to one kingdom.

Although the cities were discovered separately, the archaeologist claims to be the first to connect the dots, establishing that it is an organized urban network built around 1000 BC.

And King David reigned from 1104 to 960 BC during the Iron Age.

David is said to have been a shepherd boy who lived around 1000 BC.

An archaeologist claims that the ruins of five fortified cities in Jerusalem are the ruins of a kingdom ruled by the biblical figure of King David. Pictured is one of the ancient cities in Khirbet Qeiyafa

Yosef Garfinkle of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem believes the cities date back to the early 10th century B.C., some 200 years earlier than previously thought, placing them in the time of David

“I hate using the term ‘trying to prove the Bible,’ because I’m not trying to prove anything,” Garfinkel said. Times of Israel.

“There are biblical traditions, and we can see whether these have historical memories or not… It doesn’t mean that everything, 100 percent, is historical memories.

“Sometimes there are mistakes, sometimes there’s wishful thinking, sometimes there’s ideology.”

The ruins are located in Khirbet Qeiyafa, Tell en-Naṣbeh, Khirbet ed-Dawwara, Lachish and Beth Shemesh, north and west of Jerusalem.

The fortified city at Khirbet Qeiyafa, excavated from 2007 to 2013, revealed two gates, two plazas, a casemate city wall, a peripheral belt of buildings against the city wall, a large pillared building and a large public building at the highest point of the site .

The ruins are located in Khirbet Qeiyafa, Tell en-Naṣbeh, Khirbet ed-Dawwara, Lachish and Beth Shemesh, north and west of Jerusalem

The fortified city at Khirbet Qeiyafa was found to include two gates, two plazas, a casemate city wall, a peripheral belt of buildings abutting the city wall, a large pillared building, and a large public building at the highest point of the site

A casemate consisted of two thinner, parallel, with empty space between them.

Bet Shemesh is located in the north of Shephelah, about a day’s walk from Jerusalem and was discovered in 1911.

“A photograph of this city wall shows two casemates built of massive stones, as might be expected for a city’s fortifications,” the study reads.

Tell en-Naṣbeh, also a half-day walk to Jerusalem, was excavated from 1926 to 1935.

‘A photo of [Beth Shemesh] shows two casemates built of solid stones, as would be expected for a city’s fortifications,” the study reads

Beth Shemesh is located in northern Shephelah, about a day’s walk from Jerusalem and was discovered in 1911

The city was surrounded by a casemate wall, bordered by a belt of houses incorporating the casemates as back rooms; on the other side these houses opened onto a perimeter road.

Khirbet ed-Dawwara, excavated between 1985 and 1986, was found to have ‘a poorly preserved, ephemeral site built on bedrock’.

It consisted of a single settlement phase with remnants of four-room houses and a casemate fortification.

Tel Lachish is located in the south of Shephelahabout two days from Jerusalem.

Tell en-Naṣbeh, also a half-day walk to Jerusalem, was excavated from 1926 to 1935

The city was surrounded by a casemate wall, bordered by a belt of houses incorporating the casemates as back rooms; on the other side these houses opened onto a perimeter road.

Seven different expeditions have extensively excavated the site from 1932 to today.

The old city was also found to be surrounded by a wall.

Garfinkel determined the ages of all five using olive pits found scattered throughout the ruins, which he did by radiocarbon dating.

Carbon dating “is based on the fact that living organisms, such as trees, plants, humans and animals, incorporate carbon-14 into their tissues,” according to the University of Chicago.

“When they die, over time the carbon-14 starts to change into other atoms. Scientists can estimate how long the organism has been dead by counting the remaining carbon-14 atoms.’

Although the cities were discovered separately, the archaeologist claimed he was the first to connect the dots, determining that they are an organized urban network built around 1000 BC. Pictured are the ruins of Lachish

Tel Lachish is located in southern Shephelah, about two days from Jerusalem

Garfinkel also discovered several proto-Canaanite and Canaanite inscriptions at some of the sites, indicating an increased demand for communications marking a centralized authority and a strong kingdom, he claimed.

Fellow archaeologists aren’t sold on Garfinkel’s claim.

Professor Aren Maeir, an archaeologist from Bar Ilan University, told The Times of Israel: ‘I think it’s an oversimplification and he flattens the details.

“There are many small details that I disagree with, and there are generalizations over a broad period of time that are problematic.

‘It’s like a fisherman telling you about the kind of fish he’s caught and with each story his arms grow wider and wider.

‘Is it a sardine, a mackerel or a blue whale? If you read the bible text and take it literally, it is a blue whale.

“I think there was probably a small kingdom in Jerusalem, but we don’t know what influence this kingdom had.”