Tel Jericho
About Tel Jericho
Tel Jericho is the ancient city of Jericho, one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities and the lowest city in the world, about 240m below sea level. It is a Palestinian city nestled in the West Bank in the Jordan Valley. In Jericho today, there is a large old sycamore tree believed to be the same tree which Zacchaeus used to climb to get a better view of Jesus preaching some 2,000 years ago.
Ancient Jericho
Archaeologists have uncovered the remnants of over 20 successive settlements at ancient Jericho, also known as Tell al-Sultan. The earliest remnants trace to 10,000 B.C. It is situated on the Ain as-Sultan spring (later called Elisha’s Spring) in an area of fertile soil that attracted the hunter-gatherers of the Natufian culture who were among the first people to build permanent homes and cultivate edible plants.
Walls of Jericho
The walls of Jericho do not exist anymore. However, parts of the walls are still there to see, having been dug out of the soil to reveal the layered walls. Jericho is famous in biblical history as the first town struck by the Israelites under Joshua after they crossed the Jordan River and entered Canaan (Joshua 6). Circling the town seven times with the Ark of the Covenant, the walls came crashing down after the Israelites blew the ram’s horn trumpets.
Interesting Facts
- Jericho was occupied by Jordan from 1949 to 1967. The city was captured by Israel after the Six-Day War in 1967. It was the first city handed over to the Palestinian Authority control in 1994 in accordance with the Oslo accords.
- Jericho was called the “city of palm trees” (Deuteronomy 34:5) and indeed palm trees are common sight in the oasis.
- It is believed that the Roman emperor Augustus gifted the estate to Cleopatra, queen of Egypt. Herod the Great liked it too so he leased it back from Cleopatra and built a lavish royal complex in Jericho.
