New Excavations taking place in June 14-July 24 2009
We welcome you to our Web site and invite you to explore its various layers to learn more about our excavation and how you might participate and support this exciting and most promising endeavor. Our Mt Zion excavation site is just outside the present Old City wall, along the road between the Zion Gate and the Dung Gate, but in Roman times it was well inside the walls of the ancient city of Jerusalem. Nearby are many important places in the history of Jerusalem, namely the Praetorium where Jesus was tried before Pontius Pilate, and the House of Caiaphas and the other priestly families in the Upper City of Jerusalem in the first century C.E. In the Byzantine period, the area was situated at the southern end of the Cardo Maximus, which was a grand columned street and in its vicinity Justinian (mid sixth century) built a very large church (the Nea). The summit of Mount Zion was a focus for the building of houses in the Early Islamic Period. The Crusaders and the Ayyubids built their fortifications across the crest of the hill, and in the early 13th century, the local Sultan destroyed the gate-tower, which was located in the area of our excavation.
We anticipate exciting finds during the forthcoming dig. The houses from the first century C.E. are extremely well preserved, with intact barrel-vaulted rooms and with the walls of the first floors surviving to a height of two meters. Many coins, pottery, and stone artifacts from this period will be uncovered. It is even possible that we will find wall paintings, similar to those found upslope in the House of Caiaphas excavations.
