Temple built in 750 B.C. found in Israel

December 28, 2012

Archeologists have discovered the ruins of a temple built in 750 B.C. at Tel Motza, a site west of Jerusalem.

“The finds recently discovered at Tel Motza provide rare archaeological evidence for the existence of temples and ritual enclosures in the Kingdom of Judah in general, and in the Jerusalem region in particular, prior to the religious reforms throughout the kingdom at the end of the monarchic period (at the time of Hezekiah and Isaiah), which abolished all ritual sites, concentrating ritual practices solely at the Temple in Jerusalem,” the site’s directors explained.

“The walls of the structure are massive, and it includes a wide, east-facing entrance, conforming to the tradition of temple construction in the ancient Near East: the rays of the sun rising in the east would have illuminated the object placed inside the temple first, symbolizing the divine presence within,” Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. “A square structure which was probably an altar was exposed in the temple courtyard, and the cache of sacred vessels was found near the structure.”

 

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Further information:

• Temple and sacred vessels from Biblical times discovered at Tel Motza (Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs)
• Israelis find 2,750-year-old temple (NBC News)