Archeology in Jericho - the Battle of Jericho and History

The Bible suggests the conquest of Jericho occurred near 1400 BC. The miraculous aspect of how the city was conquered, causes some scholars to dismiss the account as only folklore. Does archaeology support the Biblical account? Because of its dramatic Biblical history, Jericho has been in the crosshairs of archaeologists for a long time; its first documented excavation began as early as 1867 by Charles Warren. Over the past century four prominent archaeologists have also excavated the site: Carl Watzinger from 1907-1909, John Garstang in the 1930s, Kathleen Kenyon from 1952-1958, and Bryant Wood from 1985-1990. The results of their work have been remarkable, but also have been subjected to much debate and interpretation. So what has archeology in Jericho taught us?

Ancient Jericho is located near a large spring on the western edge of the Jordan Valley , just north of the Dead Sea . This excellent water supply and favorable climate (especially in winter) made it a desirable place to live in ancient times. Archaeologists think it might have been settled as early as 8000 BC, thus making Jericho the world’s oldest known city. At 670 feet below sea level, it is also the lowest city in the world.

Excavated Jericho

According to the book of Joshua, the Israelites marched around the town for seven days, increasing their presence by marching seven times around the city on the seventh day.  Priests blew trumpets and the walls of the city collapsed (Joshua 6:13-20). After this, the Israelite army “destroyed with the sword every living thing in it—men and women, young and old, cattle, sheep and donkeys” (Joshua 6:21).

If this actually happened, we would expect to find two confirmations: evidence that the walls indeed collapsed, and indications this event happened at the time period when Joshua lead the Israelites into the promised land, around 1400 BC.

• Was the city destroyed as described in the Bible? The editor of the Biblical Archaeology Review, Hershel Shanks, believes so, as he states that fiery destruction did occur at Jericho “in uncanny detail just as the Bible describes it.”[1] His conclusion followed his review of the vast archaeological data collected over the years. As early as the 1930s John Garstang concluded “as to the main fact, then, there remains no doubt about it: the walls fell outwards so completely, the attackers would be able to clamber up and over the ruins of the city.” In the words of Kathleen Kenyon: “The destruction was complete. Walls and floors were blackened or reddened by fire, and every room was filled with fallen bricks, timbers, and household utensils; in most rooms the debris was heavily burnt, but the collapse of the walls of the eastern rooms seems to have taken place before they were affected by the fire.”[2] Also remarkable is that both Garstang and Kenyon found large quantities of grain stored in the ground-floor rooms of the houses. The presence of these grain stores in the destroyed city is entirely consistent with the Biblical account. The city did not fall to a starvation siege, so common in ancient times.[3] Therefore it can be safely concluded that the destruction of Jericho was complete and was accomplished without a sustained siege or long battle. Some propose this was a major earthquake, but that is entirely consistent with the Biblical account.
• When was Jericho destroyed? This appears the most controversial among archaeologists. John Garstang in the 1930s concluded the destruction occurred in the 1400s BC, consistent with the date of the Biblical account. Kathleen Kenyon however concluded the city fell 150 years earlier. If so, Jericho was only rubble long since abandoned by the time Joshua’s armies entered Canaan . From 1985 to 1990 Bryant Wood did additional excavations, re-examining Kenyon’s conclusions. He found various mistakes in her analyses and concluded Garstang’s original date appears correct. [4]

The disagreements among archaeologists about Jericho are far from settled. There is no unanimous judgment, and future excavations might well lead to new discoveries and new conclusions. Clearly the historical data is friendly to the Bible and definitely does not disprove that Jericho might have fallen in a miraculous way to the Israelites –just as described in the Bible.