Archeological discoveries have repeatedly confirmed the historical accounts mentioned in the Bible, particularly from the Old Testament. Once again, a scientific breakthrough has supported claims from the Holy Book with radiocarbon dating.
Vindicating a Biblical Account
During the 1970s, Israeli archaeologist Nahman Avigad unearthed an ancient defensive wall later named the Broad Wall. The massive defense structure measures 23 feet (seven meters) thick and is preserved in places to a height of 11 feet (3.3 meters).
The wall is situated in the City of David, a historical site believed to be the origin of Jerusalem. The Second Book of Chronicles in the Old Testament describes its construction.
Until now, it was believed that a stretch of wall in the original heart of Jerusalem was constructed by Hezekiah, the King of Judah, who reigned between 700 and 800 B.C. Alarmed by the Assyrian Empire's destruction of the Kingdom of Israel, the king thought of building the wall as a defense against the invaders. The construction was supposedly part of Hezekiah's rebellion against Assyrian King Sennacherib.
After a decade-long investigation of the ruins, it was revealed that Hezekiah's great-grandfather, Uzziah, actually built the structure. It was believed to be constructed after a massive earthquake that struck the ancient city.
According to Joe Uziell of the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA), it is now apparent that the eastern part of the wall in the City of David was built earlier. It was constructed shortly after a tectonic activity in Jerusalem was established as part of the city's construction. The tectonic event was even mentioned in the Bible's Book of Amos, dating to "two years before the earthquake when Uzziah was king of Judah."
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Dramatic Radiocarbon Dating
Using carbon-14 dating, a joint project between Tel Aviv University, the IAA, and the Weizmann Institute of Science revealed the provenance of the ancient wall. This technique uses the decay of radioactive isotopes of carbon to measure the age of objects that contain carbon-14.
According to the IAA, this particular period of history was considered a 'black hole' for carbon-14 dating because of the changing levels of the isotope in the atmosphere at the time. However, using ancient tree rings from Europe, experts were able to monitor these fluctuations year by year.
The resolution of carbon-14 was 200 to 300 years, making it impossible to distinguish anything else. According to Elisabetta Boaretto of the Weizmann Institute, their work in the City of David was successfully resolved in less than ten years, something very new and dramatic.
The research team took their archaeological samples from organic artifacts found in four excavation sites. Among these artifacts were date pits, grape seeds, and bat skeletons. They were cleaned, converted into graphite, and then put into a particle accelerator to separate the carbon-14 from other organic materials. After the procedure, the sample's actual age was determined, and five generations pushed back the westward expansion of the ancient city.
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