Charred Iron Age beams dating to destruction of Solomon’s Temple unearthed in Jerusalem

Burnt wooden beams discovered in the City of David in Jerusalem, believed to have been burnt in 586 BCE (Credit: Reut Vilf, City of David)[Missing Credit]

Dr Johanna Regev of the IAA, an expert in radiocarbon dating, said: “It is very rare in Israel to find wood with such a large number of growth rings.

"Here, in the City of David, we found thick beams with many rings, offering significant research potential – with more growth rings enabling higher dating resolution. Until now, we could date finds within a range of hundreds of years.

"Now we can attain much greater precision, narrowing the dating range down to as little as ten years.”

Dr Yiftah Shalev, who co-directs the excavation alongside Professor Yuval Gadot of Tel Aviv University, suggested that returning exiles deliberately preserved the ruins, saying: “Preserving memory is a human need, seeking to preserve what once existed.

"Here we see it in its clearest form: a deliberate choice to leave ruins in place as a testament to the destruction and build the new layer over them.”

The find comes just before Tisha B’Av, which commemorates the destruction of the First and Second Temples in Jerusalem, as well as other calamities in Jewish history.

Excavation co-director Efrat Bocher said: “This discovery makes you feel that you are witnessing the very moment of destruction, the moment when it all happened. It’s deeply moving.”

The First Temple, built by King Solomon, was razed by Babylonian forces under Nebuchadnezzar in 586 BCE, leading to the exile of the Jews from ancient Judea into Mesopotamia.

The site’s later history, including the construction of the Second Temple and its eventual destruction by the Romans in 70 CE, underscores the enduring centrality of Jerusalem to Jewish identity.