Editing Tel Lachish (section)

====Siege by Sennacherib, Assyrian rule====
{{main|Siege of Lachish}}
[[File:Lachish inscription.jpeg|left|thumb|The single inscription which identifies the location depicted in the reliefs reads: "Sennacherib, the mighty king, king of the country of Assyria, sitting on the throne of judgment, before (or at the entrance of) the city of Lachish (Lakhisha). I give permission for its slaughter"]]

In 701&nbsp;BCE, during the revolt of [[Hezekiah]], king of Judah, against the Neo-Assyrian Empire, it was besieged and captured by [[Sennacherib]] despite the defenders' determined resistance.<ref>David Ussishkin, ''The Conquest of Lachish by Sennacherib'', Tel Aviv University Institute of Archaeology, 1982, {{ISBN|965-266-001-9}}</ref> Some scholars believe that the fall of Lachish occurred during a second campaign in the area by Sennacherib ca. 688&nbsp;BCE.<ref>William H. Shea, "Jerusalem under siege: Did Sennacherib attack twice?", ''Biblical Archaeology Review'', vol. 25, iss. 6, pp. 36–44, Nov/Dec 1999</ref> The site now contains the only remains of an Assyrian siege ramp discovered. Sennacherib later devoted a whole room in his "Palace without a rival", the southwest palace in [[Nineveh]], for [[Lachish relief|artistic representations]] of the siege on large [[alabaster]] slabs, most of which are now on display in the [[British Museum]]. They hold depictions of Assyrian siege ramps, battering rams, sappers, and other siege machines and army units, along with Lachish's architecture and its final surrender. Combined with the archaeological finds, they give a good understanding of siege warfare of the period.<ref>William H. Shea, "Sennacherib's Description of Lachish and its Conquest," ''Andrews University Seminary Studies'', vol. 26, no. 2, pp. 171–180, 1988</ref><ref name=BritMus>{{cite web|url=http://www.britishmuseum.org/visiting/galleries/middle_east/room_10_assyria_lion_hunts.aspx|title=Room 10: Assyria: Lion hunts|publisher=British Museum}}</ref> Modern excavation of the site has revealed that the Assyrians built a stone and dirt ramp up to the level of the Lachish city wall, thereby allowing the soldiers to charge up the ramp and storm the city.<ref>GARFINKEL, Y., CARROLL, J. W., PYTLIK, M., & MUMCUOGLU, M., "Constructing the Assyrian Siege Ramp at Lachish: Texts, Iconography, Archaeology and Photogrammetry", ''Oxford Journal of Archaeology'', 40(4), pp. 417–439, 2021 https://doi.org/10.1111/ojoa.12231</ref> Excavations revealed approximately 1,500 skulls in one of the caves near the site, and hundreds of arrowheads on the ramp and at the top of the city wall, indicating the ferocity of the battle. The city occupied an area of {{convert|8|ha}}.{{when|date=October 2020}}<ref name=rocca>{{cite book|last=Rocca|first=Samuel|title=The Fortifications of Ancient Israel and Judah 1200–586 BC|year=2012|publisher=Osprey Publishing|location=Oxford|isbn=9781782005216|page=32|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lepkNC_gqs4C&pg=PA32}}</ref>