Archaeologists have reported finding charred wooden beams from Solomon’s Temple, which was razed to the ground by the Babylonians in 586 BC.
The Israel Antiquities Authority said the sycamore beams were discovered during a dig on the Givati Parking Lot – a major archaeological excavation site in the Jerusalem Walls National Park.
Researchers say the beams, forming part of the roof of an inner courtyard in a building, collapsed during the first Temple’s destruction. They believe that the timber was preserved by melted plaster cladding falling from the walls onto the wooden beams and sealing them.
One of the charred wooden beams (photo: Israel Antiquities Authority Official Youtube Channel)
Excavation director Efrat Bocher told The Times of Israel : “This discovery makes you feel that you are witnessing the very moment of destruction, the moment when it all happened. It’s deeply moving.”
Previous significant finds at the site include an impressive two-story building with a luxurious floor and a seal impression bearing the name of Nathan-Melech, the King’s servant (2 Kings 23v11).
Chris Sinkinson, minister and archaeologist, described the discovery as “tantalising”. He said: “Dating to the time of the first Temple period they give further evidence for the presence of the people of Judah and Solomon’s building work 3,000 years ago. That they have been so well preserved suggests that they were deliberately buried in ancient times, offering a testimony to the Babylonian destruction of the city and its temple.”
“Archaeology generally deals in debris and discarded rubbish but, as this find demonstrates, such debris continues to bear a witness to the credibility of the Biblical record.”
Sinkinson adds: “Wooden beams were supplied by King Hiram of Tyre to support the building work of Solomon (1 Kings 5v10). They were high-quality beams for monumental building work. This discovery confirms a 3,000-year-old trade recorded by the Biblical writers.”
