The archaeological discovery of man's first city
The author of this article is Ni Fangliu
The visit of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to China is news.
Abbas visited the welcoming ceremony in China
But what do Chinese know about Palestine? It is estimated that many people do not know very well, and what they know may be that they are at war with Israel every day on TV.
In fact, the place of Malestan is too historical, the earliest human city found so far, and it is still inhabited, is in Palestine.
The city is Jericho.
Archaeological model of the ancient city of Jericho
Located in the Jordan Valley, Jericho is a beautiful oasis with fertile land and abundant water resources, which can fully meet the needs of local agricultural irrigation and domestic water for residents.
The unique geographical location and natural conditions make Jericho a treasure land.
Archaeological finds suggest that Jericho was inhabited as early as around 10,000 BC. Archaeologists deduce that it is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world.
Ruins of Jericho City
At that time, the Jericho people mainly made their living from agriculture, growing crops and raising livestock. So far, Jericho's agriculture is still relatively developed, rich in vegetables and fruits, but the economic base is very weak, there are no factories, only a few simple workshops and repair shops.
The earliest human settlement in Palestine, in the area of Tell Jericho, west of the present-day city, dates back to the late Neolithic period, 10,000 years ago (9,000 years ago).
Ruins of ancient city walls
Jericho's deepest and most influential site, including its ancient walls, is recorded in the Bible.
Between the 8th and 6th centuries BC, Jericho developed into an ancient city with fortifications such as stone walls and towers. According to the Bible, Jericho was an important city in the Canaanite region and was targeted by the Israelites when they invaded Canaan.
Around 1400 BC, the walls of Jericho were breached by the Israelite prophet Joshua.
Model ruins
Joshua was a Hebrew leader recorded in the Bible, and this event is regarded as an important historical event in the Israelites' invasion of Canaan, and it became the most ancient beginning of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and the reason for the ongoing contention.
Fortunately, on September 13, 1993, Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization signed the Gaza and Jericho Advance Self-Government Agreement in Washington. An agreement on the implementation of the agreement was signed in May 1994, and Jericho was subsequently liberated from Israeli occupation.
Map of the Assyrian Empire
Jericho has experienced many wars, conquests and reconstructions in ancient history, and has belonged to the Assyrian Empire, the Babylonian Empire, the Persian Empire, Alexander the Great's Macedonian Empire, and the Roman Empire.
This is confirmed by archaeological finds.
Some netizens may think that the ancient city wall site is in China, wrong, there is no matter of the Great Wall of China. During the excavations in Jericho, archaeologists found underground multi-layered walls, which were built in different histories, the most famous of which is the Joshua period, which is one of the earliest known walls in the world.
Site excavation site of Jericho City
The city walls were built of large stones and bricks, which were very strong, easy to defend and difficult to attack, showing that the workers at that time had superb construction skills and the society also had strong organizational skills.
On the ruins of the ancient city, multiple towers have also been found, with later lookout and bunker functions. If the enemy comes, it will soon be discovered, report to the command staff to organize the defense. But some scholars believe that the tower may have been the site of religious ceremonies.
Imaginary map of ancient Palestinian life
In the archaeological excavations of Jericho, in addition to the castle, many remains of residential buildings were found. The most famous of these is archaeologist Kathleen Kenyon, a "stone house" discovered in the 1950s, dated to around 8000 BC, as an early Neolithic human dwelling and one of the world's earliest houses.
Catherine is British, former director of the British Museum, and acting director and secretary of the Institute of Archaeology at the University of London during World War II.
Catherine at the excavation site
In 1951, she traveled to Transjordan and began excavating Jericho in the West Bank. Jericho is recognized as the oldest continuously inhabited city in history and is known to the world for her discovery.
Archaeological excavations in Jericho unearthed many important artifacts, including a large number of relics and works of art, including pottery, stone tools, bone tools, shell ornaments, and sculptures.
Ancient trumpets found in the Palestinian-Israeli region
The biblical scene of blowing the trumpet during the attack on the city of Jericho
The most incredible thing is that archaeology has found legends recorded in the Bible.
The Bible records that the army commanded by Joshua came to the city of Jericho and attacked Jericho. The army marched around the city seven times, and when the trumpet sounded on the seventh time, the walls collapsed.
During the excavation of the city wall site, archaeologists actually found several ancient horns.
This confirms that what the Bible says is not nonsense.
In modern Palestinian-Israeli areas, there is still a custom of blowing the trumpet
During the excavations, many ancient cemeteries were found near Jericho, and many ancient human remains were unearthed.
Many of these tombs have burial objects and related relics, which are very well preserved and have not been stolen or destroyed, providing important witnesses for understanding the funeral rites and beliefs of the time.
Ruins of Jericho City
Those remains are also important, providing rare research materials for studying the physical characteristics, health conditions and dietary conditions of ancient humans.
It is worth mentioning that the ancient history and rich human heritage have become the wealth of modern Jericho, and a large number of foreign donkey friends visit every day.
Ruins of the palace of Jericho City