Ashkelon

What is known

• Excavators uncovered the oldest known arched city gate in the world at Ashkelon, dating to about 1850 BC (Middle Bronze Age Canaanite period)
• Named as one of the five Philistine cities in Joshua 13:3 and Judges tribal-allotment lists, though it was never fully subdued by Israel (Judges 1:18 records Judah briefly taking it)
• Destroyed by the Babylonians under Nebuchadnezzar II in 604 BC, an event vividly reflected in the prophet Jeremiah's oracles (Jeremiah 47)
• The Leon Levy Expedition (Harvard Semitic Museum) conducted major excavations here from 1985-2016, uncovering one of the largest Philistine cemeteries ever found

History

Founded

Continuously inhabited since the Neolithic period; a major Canaanite port by the Middle Bronze Age (c. 2000 BC), later one of the five Philistine city-states

Population

Estimated 10,000-15,000 at its Philistine/Iron Age peak; grew much larger under later Roman and Islamic rule

Industry

Major seaport and trade hub; wine production, fishing, and later (Roman-Byzantine) glass and textiles

Coordinates

31.6693° N, 34.5453° E

Rulers and powers

• Philistine city-lords (seranim) — c. 1175-604 BC
• Neo-Babylonian Empire (city destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar II, 604 BC) — 604 BC

Archaeology

Ashkelon National Park preserves the extensive tell and coastal ramparts excavated by the Leon Levy Expedition, including Canaanite fortifications, the Philistine city, and a Roman-Byzantine basilica. The Middle Bronze Age mudbrick gate is the oldest arched gate yet discovered anywhere in the world.

Scripture references

• Joshua 13:3
• Judges 1:18
• Judges 14:19 — Samson strikes down thirty men of Ashkelon
• 1 Samuel 6:17 — Listed among the five Philistine golden-tumor offerings
• 2 Samuel 1:20 — David's lament: 'tell it not in Ashkelon'
• Jeremiah 25:20
• Jeremiah 47:5-7
• Amos 1:8
• Zephaniah 2:4-7
• Zechariah 9:5

On a modern map

Ashkelon today

Further reading

• Ashkelon - Wikipedia
• Leon Levy Expedition to Ashkelon