The Old Testament Studies and Biblical Archaeology division of the
Faculty of Protestant Theology at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz
(JGU) and the University of California in Los Angeles (UCLA) has conducted excavations on the ancient hill of Jaffa in Israel. The
recent excavations have not only shed new light on the destruction of
elements of the fortification, but also unearthed evidence pointing
towards the presence of an Egyptian population on the site.
Historically, Jaffa, now part of the city of Tel Aviv, is the oldest
port documented in world history. Ever since the 2nd millennium B.C.,
Jaffa has been home to intense trading activity. The remains of a
gateway belonging to an Egyptian fortification dating to the dynasty of
Ramses II (1279-1213 B.C.) had already been discovered during
excavations led by the former municipal archaeologist Y. Kaplan in the
1950s. However, the findings from Kaplan's digs have never been
extensively published. The Jaffa Cultural Heritage Project, whose
partners include the universities in Mainz and Los Angeles as well as
the Israeli Antiquities Authority and the Old Jaffa Development Company,
not only aims to publish the findings of these older excavations, but
also conduct new digs at sites around the city.
The goal of the excavations was to clarify the history of
settlement during the 2nd millennium B.C. by investigating the phases of
the fort's destruction and the nature of the Egyptian presence. The
German site director Dr. Martin Peilstöcker of JGU explains that it has
now become clear that the gate itself was destroyed and rebuilt at least
four times. Moreover, it also appears that there is more than just the
mud brick architecture and household pottery that reflect Egyptian
tradition. In fact, a rare scarab amulet has been found that bears the
cartouche of the Egyptian Pharaoh Amenhotep III (1390-1353 B.C.), thus
also attesting to the presence of an Egyptian community in the city.
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