Editing Tel Lachish

{{Short description|Biblical city and an archeological site in Israel}}
{{About|the ancient town|other uses|Lakhish (disambiguation){{!}}Lakhish}}
{{About|Tell ed-Duweir or Lachish in the Shfela|Khirbet ed-Duweir in Jordan Valley|Lo-debar}}
{{Infobox ancient site
|name           = Lachish
|native_name    = תל לכיש {{in lang|he}}
|alternate_name = 
|image          = LachishFrontGate.jpg
|alt = 
|caption        = Main gate of Lachish
|map_type       = Israel
|relief=yes
|map_alt = 
|map_size       = 150px
|coordinates    = {{coord|31|33|54|N|34|50|56|E|display=inline,title}}
|grid_position  = 135/108 [[Palestine grid|PAL]]
|location       = [[Southern District (Israel)|Southern District]], Israel
|region         = [[Shephelah]]
|type           = Settlement
|part_of =[[Canaan]], [[Kingdom of Judah]] 
|length = 
|width = 
|area           = {{convert|20|ha|abbr=on}}
|height = 
|builder = 
|material = 
|built = 
|abandoned      = 587&nbsp;BCE
|epochs         = Bronze Age, Iron Age
|cultures =[[Canaan]]ite, [[Israelite]], [[Kingdom of Judah|Judahite]] 
|dependency_of = 
|occupants = 
|event          = [[Siege of Lachish]] (701&nbsp;BCE)
|excavations    = 1932–1938, 1966, 1968, 1973–1994, 2013–2016
|archaeologists = [[James Leslie Starkey]], [[Olga Tufnell]], [[Yohanan Aharoni]], [[David Ussishkin]], [[Yosef Garfinkel]]
|condition      = Ruined
|ownership      = Public
|management = 
|public_access  = Yes
|website        = <!-- {{URL|example.com}} -->
|notes = 
}}

'''Lachish''' ({{langx|he|לכיש|Lāḵîš}}; {{langx|grc-x-koine|Λαχίς}}; {{langx|la|Lachis}}) was an ancient [[Canaan]]ite and later [[Israelites|Israelite]] city in the [[Shephelah]] ("lowlands of Judea") region of Canaan on the south bank of the [[Lakhish River]] mentioned several times in the [[Hebrew Bible]]. The current ''[[tell (archaeology)|tell]]'' by that name, known as '''Tel Lachish''' ({{langx|he|תל לכיש}}) or '''Tell el-Duweir''' ({{lang|ar|تل الدوير}}),<ref>{{Citation|title=Collection of Publications, no. 277|url=https://www.nevo.co.il/Law_word/law10/yalkut-0277.pdf|page=636|year=1953|contribution=State of Israel Records|place=Jerusalem|publisher=Government of Israel|language=he|quote=(p. 630) The names of the settlements were mostly determined at different times by the 'Names Committee for the Settlements,' under the auspices of the [[Jewish National Fund]] (est. 1925), while [other] names were added by the [[Government Naming Committee]].}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Vermeersch|first1=Shyama|last2=Riehl|first2=Simone|last3=Starkovich|first3=Britt M.|last4=Streit|first4=Katharina|last5=Höflmayer|first5=Felix|date=2021-02-09|title=Animal husbandry from the Middle Bronze Age through the Iron Age in the Shephelah—faunal remains from the new excavations at Lachish|journal=Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences|volume=13|issue=3|page=38 |doi=10.1007/s12520-021-01289-1|bibcode=2021ArAnS..13...38V |s2cid=231850376 |issn=1866-9557|doi-access=free}}</ref> has been identified with Lachish. Today, it is an [[national parks and nature reserves of Israel|Israeli national park]] operated and maintained by the [[Israel Nature and Parks Authority]]. It lies near the present-day [[moshav]] of [[Lakhish, Israel|Lakhish]], which was named in honor of the ancient city.

Lachish was first mentioned in the [[Amarna letters]]. In the [[Book of Joshua]], Lachish is cited as one of the cities conquered by the Israelites for joining the league against the [[Gibeon (ancient city)|Gibeonites]] ({{Bibleverse|Joshua|10:31-33|||}}). The territory was later assigned to the [[tribe of Judah]] according to [[Joshua 15]]:39 and became part of the united [[Kingdom of Israel (united monarchy)|Kingdom of Israel]]. Following the kingdom's partition, Lachish emerged as one of the most important cities in the [[Kingdom of Judah]], second only to the capital, [[Jerusalem]].<ref name="King" />

Lachish is best known for its [[Siege of Lachish|siege and conquest by the Neo-Assyrian Empire]] in 701 BCE, an event famously depicted on the [[Lachish reliefs]], which can be seen today in the [[British Museum]]. According to the [[Book of Jeremiah]], Lachish and [[Azekah]] were the last two Judean cities to fall to the [[Neo-Babylonian Empire]] before the [[Siege of Jerusalem (587 BCE)|conquest of Jerusalem]] according to [[Jeremiah 34]]:7. One of the [[Lachish letters]], written in 597–587 BCE, warns of the impending Neo-Babylonian destruction. It reads: "Let my lord know that we are watching over the beacon of Lachish, according to the signals which my lord gave, for [[Azekah]] is not seen." This pottery inscription can be seen at the [[Israel Museum]] in Jerusalem.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.jewishmag.com/56mag/lachish/lachish.htm |title=Lachish |first=Jacqueline |last=Schaalje |series=Archaeology in Israel |work=The Jewish Magazine}}</ref> The siege ramp at Lachish, designed for deploying [[battering ram]]s against the city during the Neo-Assyrian siege, is the oldest known in the world and the sole example found in the [[ancient Near East]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Garfinkel |first1=Yosef |last2=Carroll |first2=Jon W. |last3=Pytlik |first3=Michael |last4=Mumcuoglu |first4=Madeleine |date=November 2021 |title=Constructing the Assyrian Siege Ramp at Lachish: Texts, Iconography, Archaeology and Photogrammetry |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/ojoa.12231 |journal=Oxford Journal of Archaeology |language=en |volume=40 |issue=4 |pages=417–439 |doi=10.1111/ojoa.12231 |issn=0262-5253}}</ref>

==History==
[[File:LachishPalace053011.jpg|thumb|Commander's palace]]
[[File:LachishRamp053011.jpg|thumb|Assyrian siege ramp]]
[[File:Lachishsiege1.PNG|right|thumb|Judean captives being led away into slavery by the Assyrians after the siege of Lachish in 701&nbsp;B.C. This relief is important for the knowledge of Judean dress.]]

===Neolithic===
Occupation at the site of Lachish began during the [[Neolithic|Pottery Neolithic]] period (5500–4500 BCE). Flint tools from that period have been found.

===Early Bronze===
Major development began in the Early [[Bronze Age]] (3300–3000 BCE).<ref name=King/> By the end of the Early Bronze, Lachish had become a large settlement. Most of the recovered pottery is of [[Levantine pottery#Khirbet Kerak ware|Khirbet Kerak Ware]].

===Middle Bronze (Levels VIII–IX)===
The MBA period has not been extensively excavated at the site. During the Middle Bronze (2000–1650 BCE), the settlement developed.

In the Middle Bronze I, the mound was resettled. Remains of a cult place and an assemblage of votive cultic vessels were found in Area D.

In the Middle Bronze IIA, the development continued.

In the Middle Bronze IIB-C, Lachish became a major city in the Southern Levant. An impressive [[glacis]]-like structure was constructed around the city, which shaped its present steep slopes and sharp corners. The proposed glacis fronted a city wall built of massive stones. In Area P, a large mudbrick fortress was excavated. Finds from the fortress include 4 scarabs and a number of scarab sealings. These were of "both the local Canaanite MB IIC style and the Hyksos style". Radiocarbon dating produced a date in the mid-16th century BCE. By the end of Middle Bronze IIC the city was destroyed by fire. Some features originally ascribed to the Iron Age by the early excavators have now been redated to the MBA and LBA.

===Late Bronze (Levels VI–VII)===
[[File:Amarna letter. A letter from Shipti Ba'al (ruler of Lachish), who reassures the Egyptian pharaoh (Amenhotep III or his son Akhenaten) of his loyalty. Akkadian cuneiform text. 14th century BCE. From Tell el-Amarna, Egypt. British Museum.jpg|thumb|Amarna letter EA 330. A letter from Shipti Ba'al (ruler of Lachish), who reassures the Egyptian pharaoh (Amenhotep III or his son Akhenaten) of his loyalty. 14th century BCE. From Tell el-Amarna, Egypt. British Museum]]

{{hiero|1=rkjšꜣ<ref name=Gauthier129 /><ref name=Hannig1361/> |2=<hiero>D21:Z1-V31:Z4-M8-G1-T14-N25</hiero>|era=nk|align=right}}
In the Late Bronze Age (1550–1200 BCE), Lachish was re-established and developed slowly, eventually becoming one of the large and prosperous cities of the Southern Levant. It is first attested as [[:wikt:rkjšꜣ|rkjšꜣ]] (''Lakisha'') in a [[New Kingdom of Egypt|New Kingdom]] text, the [[List of ancient Egyptian papyri|Papyrus Hermitage 1116A]].<ref name = Gauthier129>{{cite book |last1=Gauthier |first1=Henri |title=Dictionnaire des Noms Géographiques Contenus dans les Textes Hiéroglyphiques Vol. 3 |date=1926 |page=129 |url=https://archive.org/details/Gauthier1926/page/n67}}</ref><ref name = Hannig1361>{{cite book |last1=Hannig |first1=Rainer |title=Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch (2800 – 950 v. Chr.) |date=1995 |publisher={{ill|Philipp von Zabern|de|Verlag Philipp von Zabern}} |isbn=3-8053-1771-9 |page=1361}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Webster |first1=Lyndelle |last2=Streit |first2=Katharina |last3=Dee |first3=Michael |last4=Hajdas |first4=Irka |last5=Höflmayer |first5=Felix |title=Identifying the Lachish of Papyrus Hermitage 1116A Verso and the Amarna Letters: Implications of New Radiocarbon Dating |journal=Journal of Ancient Egyptian Interconnections |date=2019 |volume= 21 |access-date=7 April 2020|url= https://journals.uair.arizona.edu/index.php/jaei/article/view/23234}}</ref>

Lakhish came under the [[Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt]], which expelled the [[Hyksos]] and established an empire that was most powerful following the military campaigns of [[Thutmose III]]. During the [[Amarna Period]] ({{Circa|1350 BCE}}), several letters were written to the [[pharaoh]] and were discovered as part of the Amarna archive. It is mentioned in the Amarna letters as Lakisha/Lakiša (EA 287, 288, 328, 329, 335).

During the [[20th Dynasty of Egypt]], the empire of the New Kingdom of Egypt started to lose its control in the [[Southern Levant]]. A bronze object bearing the cartouche of Ramesses III may be associated with the city gate.<ref>Ussishkin 1983:123-124, 168-169</ref> While Lachish had prospered under Egyptian hegemony, fire destroyed it around 1150 BCE. It was rebuilt by Canaanites, who built two temples. However, this settlement was soon destroyed by another fire around 1130 BCE (cf. nearby fortified [[Eglon, Canaan]]). The site then remained sparsely occupied for a long time (Level V). The reasons for this may have been rebellions and invasions by the [[Sea Peoples]].

Four mass graves were found at the site with over 1500 individuals interred, about half women and children. The tombs themselves dated to the Late Bronze Age but the burials contained few dateable elements so it is uncertain if the burials date to the LBA or later.<ref>Boyes, Philip J. "The Impact and Legacy of Alphabetic Cuneiform." ''Script and Society: The Social Context of Writing Practices in Late Bronze Age Ugarit'', Oxbow Books, 2021, pp. 261–76</ref><ref>Israel Eph'Al, ''The City Besieged: Siege and Its Manifestations in the Ancient Near East'', Brill, 2009, ISBN 9789004174108</ref>

===Iron Age (Levels II–IV)===
Rebuilding of the city began in the [[Early Iron Age]], during the 10th and 9th centuries BCE, when it was part of the [[Kingdom of Judah]]. The unfortified settlement may have been destroyed {{Circa|925 BCE}} by the pharaoh [[Shoshenq I]], founder of the [[Twenty-second Dynasty of Egypt]].<ref name=King /> In the first half of the 9th century BCE, under the Judahite kings [[Asa of Judah|Asa]] and [[Jehoshaphat]], Lachish became an important city in the kingdom. It was heavily fortified with massive walls and ramparts. A royal palace was built on a platform in the center of the city.<ref name=King /> Lachish was the foremost among several towns and fortified strongholds guarding the valleys that lead up to Jerusalem and the interior of the country against enemies who usually approached from the coast.

====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>

====Babylonian occupation====
{{main|Babylonian captivity}}
Lachish fell to the Neo-Babylonian emperor [[Nebuchadnezzar II]] in his campaign against Judah in 586&nbsp;BCE.{{citation needed|date=October 2020}} The city was finally destroyed in 587&nbsp;BCE.<ref name=rocca /> Residents were exiled as part of the Babylonian captivity.<ref name=King /> During Babylonian occupation, a large residence was built on the platform that had once supported the Israelite palace. At the end of the captivity, some exiled Jews returned to Lachish and built a new city with fortifications.

Under the [[Achaemenid Empire]] (Level I), a large altar known as the Solar Shrine on the east section of the mound was built. The shrine was abandoned after the area fell in the hands of [[Alexander the Great]]. The tell has been unoccupied since then.<ref name=King />

==Identification==
Initially, Lachish was identified by [[Flinders Petrie]] with [[Tell el-Hesi]], an identification supported when a relevant cuneiform tablet was found there.<ref>G. Ernest Wright, "A Problem of Ancient Topography: Lachish and Eglon," ''The Harvard Theological Review'' vol. 64, No. 2/3, pp. 437-450, ''[[Cambridge University Press]]'', 1971</ref><ref>Sir William Matthew Flinders Petrie, Tell el Hesy (Lachish), Published for the Committee of the Palestine exploration fund by A. P. Watt, 1891</ref> The tablet mentions [[Zimredda (Lachish mayor)|Zimredda]] a governor of who is known from one of the [[Amarna Letters]] (EA 333). The current identification of ''Tell ed-Duweir'' as Lachish was first suggested by [[William F. Albright]] in 1929<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Albright |first1=W. F. |title=The American Excavations at Tell Beit Mirsim |journal=Zeitschrift für die Alttestamentliche Wissenschaft |date=1929 |volume=47 |issue=1 |page=3, n. 2 |doi=10.1515/zatw.1929.47.1.1 |s2cid=170696018}}</ref> and subsequently accepted by many scholars. This suggestion is strong but circumstantial, based mostly on the geographic location of the site, the writing of [[Eusebius]], the royal reliefs of Sennacherib, the site excavations, and an [[ostracon]] found there.<ref>Lawrence T. Geraty, "Archaeology and the Bible at Hezekiah's Lachish," ''Andrews University Seminary Studies'', vol. 25, no. 1, pp.&nbsp;27–37, 1987</ref> Israeli archaeologist and historical geographer, [[M. Avi-Yonah]], thought to place Lachish at the ancient ruin of [[Al-Qubayba, Hebron|Qobebet Ibn ‘Awwad]], near the former Palestinian Arab village by the same name, rather than at ''Tell ed Duweir''.<ref>{{cite book |last=Avi-Yonah |first=M. |author-link=Michael Avi-Yonah|title=Map of Roman Palestine|edition=2 |page=2 (Introduction)|publisher=Oxford University Press (for the Government of Palestine by Humphrey Milford, Jerusalem) |location=London|date=1940 |oclc=1274252810}}</ref> The place has been extensively excavated.

==Archaeological exploration==
===Starkey-Tufnell expedition (1932–1939)===
[[File:Tel Deweir (Lachish). LOC matpc.03321.jpg|thumb|Tell Lachish, 1936]]
The first expedition at Lachish, then Tell ed-Duweir, from 1932 to 1939, was the Starkey-Tufnell<ref name="Garfinkel_Qeiyafa_Lachish_2013">{{cite journal |url=http://tortenelemszak.uni-miskolc.hu/Hallgatoi_anyagok/BA_regeszet/oskori_kelet_forrasai/Garfinkel_et_al_2013._f_Qeiyafa_and_Lachish-libre.pdf |journal=[[Biblical Archaeology Review]] |volume=39 |number=6 |date=December 2013 |title=An Ending and a Beginning: Why we're leaving Qeiyafa and going to Lachish|access-date=January 30, 2018|first1=Yosef |last1=Garfinkel |first2=Michael |last2=Hasel |first3=Martin G. |last3=Klingbeil}}</ref> British expedition which included [[James Leslie Starkey]] as expedition leader, [[Olga Tufnell]], G.L. Harding and C. Inge.<ref name="PEF_Tufnell">{{cite web |url=https://www.pef.org.uk/profiles/olga-tufnell-1905-1985 |title=Olga Tufnell, 1905–1985 |publisher=The Palestine Exploration Fund |location=London, UK |date=nd |access-date=January 30, 2018}}</ref> It was funded by Charles Marston and [[Henry Wellcome]] with the aim of finding the Biblical city of Lachish.<ref name="Tufnell_1986">{{cite journal|title=Olga Tufnell (1904–1985)|journal=Levant|date=1 January 1986|volume=18|issue=1|pages=1–2|first1=Ros |last1=Henry and |first2= Vronwy |last2=Hankey |doi=10.1179/lev.1986.18.1.1}}</ref> They succeeded in finding Lachish, with a "wealth of well-stratified pottery", a "key part of the ceramic corpus of Palestine",<ref name="PEF_Tufnell" /> and the [[Lachish letters]], c. "written to the commander of the garrison at Lachish shortly before it fell to the Babylonians in either 589 or 586 B.C."<ref name="PEF_Tufnell" /> Starkey was murdered in 1938 while travelling to Jerusalem to open the [[Rockefeller Museum|Rockefeller Archaeological Museum]]. Tufnell, Harding and Inge remained for the 1938–1939 season. Tufnell returned to London and over the next two decades, worked at the [[UCL Institute of Archaeology|Institute of Archaeology]] in London, "sorting, collating, studying and presenting the material found at Lachish". She completed her final publication ''Lachish IV'' in 1957. She had already become a [[List of Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of London|Fellow]] of the [[Society of Antiquaries of London]] in 1951.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Ussishkin|first1=David|title=Lachish Renewed Archaeological Excavations: Lachish and the Previous Excavations|url=http://www.penn.museum/documents/publications/expedition/pdfs/20-4/ussishkin.pdf|access-date=21 February 2016|publisher=Penn Museum|date=1978|page=18}}</ref><ref name="Magrill">{{cite book|last1=Magrill|first1=Pamela|title=A Researcher's Guide to the Lachish Collection in the British Museum|date=2006|publisher=The British Museum|isbn=0-86159-161-5|url=https://www.britishmuseum.org/pdf/0Prelims.pdf|access-date=21 February 2016}}</ref><ref name="Garfinkel_Qeiyafa_Lachish_2013" /><ref>{{cite book |first=James Leslie |last=Starkey |title=Lachish I (Tell ed Duweir): Lachish Letters |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=1938}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=Olga Tufnell |display-authors=etal |title=Lachish II., (Tell ed Duweir). The Fosse Temple |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=1940|author-link=Olga Tufnell}}</ref>

[[File:El Qubeiba 1947.jpg|thumb|Tel Lachish 1947 (1:20,000)]]

===Aharoni expedition (1966, 1968)===
The second was an Israeli expedition directed by [[Yohanan Aharoni]] that took place over two seasons in 1966 and 1968.<ref name="Garfinkel_Qeiyafa_Lachish_2013"/> The dig, which focused mainly on the "Solar Shrine", was worked on behalf of [[Hebrew University]] and [[Tel Aviv University]].<ref name=King>{{cite journal|last=King|first=Philip J.|author-link=Philip King (historian)|title=Why Lachish Matters|url=http://members.bib-arch.org/publication.asp?PubID=BSBA&Volume=31&Issue=4&ArticleID=8|volume=31|issue=4|journal=[[Biblical Archaeology Review]]|date=August 2005|access-date=November 18, 2013}}</ref> Aharoni published the findings in his 1975 publication, ''Investigations at Lachish: The sanctuary and the residency''.<ref>Yohanan Aharoni, ''Investigations at Lachish: The Sanctuary and the Residency (Lachish V)'', Gateway Publishers, 1975, {{ISBN|0-914594-02-8}}</ref>

===Ussishkin expedition (1973 and 1994)===
The third expedition, 1973 and 1994, by a [[Tel Aviv University]] Institute of Archaeology and [[Israel Exploration Society]] team was led by [[David Ussishkin]].<ref>{{cite report |first=David |last=Ussishkin |title=Excavations at Tel Lachish - 1973–1977, Preliminary Report |location=Tel Aviv |volume=5 |pages=1–97 |year= 1978}}</ref>{{rp|1–97}}<ref>{{cite report |first=David |last=Ussishkin |title=Excavations at Tel Lachish - 1978–1983: Second Preliminary Report|location=Tel Aviv |volume=10  |year= 1983}}</ref>{{rp|97–175}}<ref>{{cite report |first=David |last=Ussishkin |title=Excavations and Restoration Work at Tel Lachish: 1985–1994: Third Preliminary Report|location=Tel Aviv |volume=23  |year= 1996}}</ref>{{rp|3–60}} Excavation and restoration work was conducted between 1973 and 1994 by a [[Tel Aviv University]] Institute of Archaeology and [[Israel Exploration Society]] team led by [[David Ussishkin]]. The excavation focused on the [[Bronze Age|Late Bronze]] (1550–1200 BCE) and [[Iron Age]] (1200–587 BCE) levels.<ref name=King/> The Ussishkin expedition's comprehensive 5-volume report set a new standard in archaeological publication. According to [[Yosef Garfinkel]], "The Starkey-Tufnell and Ussishkin expeditions set new standards in excavation and publication. They revolutionized our understanding of various aspects of Lachish, such as the later history of Judah and the pre-Israelite Late Bronze Age Canaanite city."<ref name="Garfinkel_Qeiyafa_Lachish_2013"/> Excavations of Tel Lachish continued in 2012 under the auspices of Tel Aviv University's Institute of Archaeology, conducted by Nissim Golding-Meir.<ref>[[Israel Antiquities Authority]], [http://www.antiquities.org.il/m_digs_eng.aspx?shana=2012 Excavators and Excavations Permit for Year 2012], Survey Permit # B-380</ref>

A Linear A inscription was also found at the site.<ref>Finkelberg et al.  1996: M. Finkelberg/A. Uchitel/D. Ussishkin, A, "Linear A Inscription from Tel Lachish", (LACH Za 1). TelAviv 23, 1996, pp. 195–207</ref>

===Garfinkel expedition (2013)===
In 2013, a fourth expedition to Lachish was begun under the direction of [[Yosef Garfinkel]], Michael G. Hasel, and Martin G. Klingbeil to investigate the Iron Age history of the site on behalf of the Institute of Archaeology, The [[Hebrew University]] of Jerusalem, and the Institute of Archaeology, [[Southern Adventist University]]. Other consortium institutions include [[Virginia Commonwealth University]], [[Oakland University]] and Korea Biblical Geography Research Institute.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-sites-places/biblical-archaeology-sites/khirbet-qeiyafa-and-tel-lachish-excavations-explore-early-kingdom-of-judah |title=Khirbet Qeiyafa and Tel Lachish Excavations Explore Early Kingdom of Judah: After seven seasons at Khirbet Qeiyafa, the team heads to Lachish |first=Noah |last=Wiener |date=November 8, 2013 |access-date=January 30, 2018 |publisher=[[Biblical Archaeology Society]] |location=Washington, D.C.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www1.southern.edu/lachish/reports-and-publications/publications.html |publisher=Southern Adventist University |access-date=January 30, 2018 |title=Publications and Bibliography |date=nd |location=Collegedale, TN |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160826173100/http://www1.southern.edu/lachish/reports-and-publications/publications.html |archive-date=August 26, 2016}}</ref> The excavations were concentrated in the northeast corner of the site near the location of the Middle Bronze Age gate and fortress.<ref>Garfinkel, Yosef, et al. "The Canaanite and Judean Cities of Lachish, Israel: Preliminary Report of the Fourth Expedition, 2013–2017.", ''American Journal of Archaeology'', vol. 125, no. 3, 2021, pp. 419–459, https://doi.org/10.3764/aja.125.3.0419</ref> In the topsoil, unstratified, was found a dark blue diorite scarab of the Egyptian New Kingdom period.<ref>Brand, Baruch, et al., "A DIORITE NEW KINGDOM SCARAB FROM TEL LACHISH." Ägypten Und Levante / Egypt and the Levant, vol. 29, 2019, pp. 159–170</ref>

In 2014, during the Fourth Expedition to Lachish, led by archaeologist [[Saar Ganor]], a small potsherd with letters from a 12th-century BCE alphabet, was found in the ruins of a Late Bronze Age temple. One researcher called it, a "once in a generation" find.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.ca/2015/12/potsherd-with-canaanite-inscription.html#pFvGYXgreEHrIMm7.97 |title=Potsherd With Canaanite Inscription Unearthed At Tel Lachish |date=December 12, 2017 |access-date=January 30, 2018}}</ref><ref name= C12jar>{{cite journal |series=The Fourth Expedition to Lachish |first1=Benjamin |last1=Sass |first2=Yosef |last2=Garfinkel |first3=Michael G. |last3=Hasel |first4=Martin G. |last4=Klingbeil |title=The Lachish Jar Sherd: An Early Alphabetic Inscription Discovered in 2014 |journal=Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research |volume=374 |issue=374 |year=2015 |pages=233–245 |doi=10.5615/bullamerschoorie.374.0233|s2cid=163289016 }}</ref><ref>[[Israel Antiquities Authority]], [http://www.antiquities.org.il/m_digs_eng.aspx?shana=2014 Excavators and Excavations Permit for Year 2014], Survey Permit # A-7073</ref>

A fifth expedition, running from 2015 to 2016, was conducted as part of developing the site as a national park. A gate shrine of Level III, destroyed during the Assyrian assault and a toilet installation were found.<ref>Ganor, S., and I. Kreimerman. (2019). "An Eighth Century BCE Gate Shrine at Tel Lachish." BASOR 381, pp. 211–236</ref> It has been suggested that the toilet, in a gate shrine, was part of Hezekiah's campaign against idolatry. Two altars in the shrine also had their horns damaged in possible desecration.<ref>{{cite web |title= When a king means business: Archaeologists find stone toilet that desecrated massive shrine |website= New Atlas |publisher= Gizmag Pty Ltd. |date= 29 September 2016 |url= http://newatlas.com/tel-lachisch-shrine-discovery/45663/ |access-date= 7 January 2017}}</ref>

===Digs since 2017===

The Korean Lachish Excavation Team led by Hong Soon-hwa, reported that they had "uncovered a wide range of 10th century BCE items, from houses with earthenware items and cooking stoves, to animal bones, olive seeds, spearheads, fortress walls and other objects" on July 5, 2017.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.kukmindaily.co.kr/article/view.asp?page=&gCode=7111&arcid=0011605615&code=71111101  |date=July 11, 2017 |access-date=January 30, 2018 |work=Kukmin Daily |location=Seoul, Korea |title=Israel's Lachish is a planned city from the Rehoboam period}}</ref><ref name="kukmindaily.co.kr">{{cite web |url=http://www.kukmindaily.co.kr/article/view.asp?page=&gCode=7111&arcid=0010808418&code=71111101 |title=Excavated Olive Seeds May Confirm Area as Rehoboam Period Archeological Site |date=July 25, 2016 |access-date=January 30, 2018 |work=Kukmin Daily |location=Seoul, Korea}}</ref>

Since 2017, the Austro-Israeli excavation is exploring the Middle and Late Bronze Age strata at the site. The project is conducted a joint project of [[Hebrew University of Jerusalem|Hebrew University]] and the Institute for Oriental and European Archaeology of the [[Austrian Academy of Sciences]] and is co-directed by Felix Höflmayer and Katharina Streit. The project is funded by the [[Austrian Science Fund]].<ref>Katharina Streit et al., Between Destruction and Diplomacy in Canaan: The Austrian-Israeli Expedition to Tel Lachish, Near Eastern Archaeology, vol. 81, no. 4, December 2018</ref><ref>[https://tracingtransformations.com/] Austrian Science Fund Tel Lachish web site</ref>

In 2018 a pottery sherd, dated to the 15th century BCE, was found with alphabetic text. This fills a gap in the development history of alphabetic writing.<ref>Felix Höflmayer et al., "Early alphabetic writing in the ancient Near East: the ‘missing link’ from Tel Lachish", Antiquity; Cambridge, vol. 95, iss. 381, (Jun 2021)</ref> In 2019 a [[hieratic]] ostracon was found, dated to the time of the Egyptian 18th Dynasty. It is described by the excavators as a name list with allocated provisions in Canaanite.<ref>Wimmer, Stefan Jakob, Webster, Lyndelle, Streit, Katharina and Höflmayer, Felix, "A New Hieratic Ostracon from Lachish", Zeitschrift für Ägyptische Sprache und Altertumskunde, vol. 150, no. 1, pp. 146-156, 2023</ref>

==Select inscriptions==

===Inscriptions in Proto-Canaanite===
As many as 12 purported [[Proto-Canaanite]] inscriptions had been discovered at Lachish by 2022.<ref name= DV>Daniel Vainstub, Madeleine Mumcuoglu, Michael G. Hasel, Katherine M. Hesler, Miriam Lavi, Rivka Rabinovich, Yuval Goren and Yosef Garfinkel (2022). "A Canaanite's Wish to Eradicate Lice on an Inscribed Ivory Comb from Lachish". ''Jerusalem Journal of Archaeology'' 2: 76–119. ISSN: 2788-8819; https://doi.org/10.52486/01.00002.4; https://jjar.huji.ac.il</ref> Six were discovered in the Starkey-Tufnell excavations, two during the renewed excavations by Ussishkin, and four in more recent excavations. At least three of the purported inscriptions are likely to have been merely figural pottery designs or pseudo-inscriptions<ref>Sass, Benjamin (1988). "The Genesis of the Alphabet and Its Development in the Second Millennium B.C." ''Ägypten und Altes Testament'' 13. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz</ref><ref>[[Emile Puech|Puech, Emile]] (1986). "The Canaanite Inscription of Lachish and their Religious Background". ''Tel Aviv'' 13:13-25. https://doi.org/10.1179/tav.1986.1986.1.13</ref> Among the well-known legitimate inscriptions are the Lachish Ewer, Lachish Bowl, the Cypriot Bowl Fragment, and the Ivory Lice Comb.

The few known inscriptions from the Late Bronze Age, the 13th and part of the 12th century BCE, show a certain "[[Linear writing|linearisation]]" when compared to the earlier, [[Proto-Sinaitic script]], but the undergone process is not yet understood.<ref name= C12jar/>

====Ivory lice comb (18th c. BCE)====
{{Main|Canaanite ivory comb}}
In 2016, an inscribed elephant ivory lice comb dating to about 1700 BCE was found at Lachish during the Garfinkel excavations. The find is purported to bear the oldest sentence found written in the early [[Canaanite script]].<ref name= DV/> In the ''editio princeps'', the authors suggest to read 15 letters, constituent of a wish to eradicate lice. They offer the following translation: "May this tusk root out the lice of the hai[r and the] beard."<ref name= DV/>

====Cypriot bowl fragment (15th c. BCE)====
In 2018, an inked rim fragment of a Cypriot White Slip II milk bowl was discovered, dating to the mid fifteenth century BCE.<ref name=hoflmayer>Felix Höflmayer, Haggai Misgav, Lyndelle Webster, and Katharina Streit, 2021. Early Alphabetic Writing in the Ancient Near East: The 'Missing Link' from Tel Lachish. ''Antiquity 95:705-719.</ref> The inscription consists of nine letters. The authors of the ''editio princeps'' offer to read two words on the inscription, ''ʿbd'' meaning "servant, slave" and ''npt'' meaning "honey, nectar."<ref name=hoflmayer/> The inscription is, however, too fragmentary to suggest much else but represents one of the earliest examples of alphabetic writing from the Levant.

====Lachish ewer (13th c. BCE)====
{{Main|Lachish ewer}}

Inscribed ewer, found in the Fosse Temple III at Level VII, which dates it back to the 13th century BCE.<ref name= C12jar/>

====Lachish bowl (13th c. BCE)====
The Lachish bowl was discovered in Tomb 527 at Lachish Level VII, dated to the 13th century BCE.<ref name= C12jar/>

====Lachish bowl fragment (12th c. BCE)====
The Lachish bowl fragment was discovered in a Level VII context and dated to the 12th century BCE.<ref name= C12jar/>

====Lachish jar sherd (12th c. BCE)====
The "Lachish jar sherd", found in 2014 in a stratigraphic context (Level VI) which allows dating it to around 1130 BCE, contains a fragmentary early alphabetic inscription.<ref name= C12jar/> The remaining nine letters, nine of them in three lines, are perfectly discernable, but they cannot be convincingly combined into words and the words into a  text.<ref name= C12jar/> The undecipherable inscription still is of great [[palaeographic]] interest, given the scarcity of Late Bronze Age West Semitic inscriptions found in controlled excavations, as it adds to our knowledge about the evolution of alphabetic script.<ref name= C12jar/>

===Inscriptions in Paleo-Hebrew===
{{Main|Lachish letters}}

The first archaeological expedition, the Starkey-Starkey-Tufnell (1932–1939) uncovered the Lachish letters, which were "written to the commander of the garrison at Lachish shortly before it fell to the Babylonians in either 589 or 586 B.C."<ref name="PEF_Tufnell" /> The Hebrew letters were written on pieces of pottery, so-called [[ostracon|ostraca]]. Eighteen letters were found in 1935 and three more in 1938, all written in [[Paleo-Hebrew alphabet|Paleo-Hebrew script]]. They were from the latest occupational level immediately before the [[Siege of Jerusalem (587 BC)|Babylonian siege of 587 BCE]]. At the time, they formed the only known [[Text corpus|corpus]] of documents in classical [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]] that had come down to us outside of the Hebrew Bible.<ref>{{cite journal |first=W. F. |last=Albright |title=The Oldest Hebrew Letters: The Lachish Ostraca |doi=10.2307/1354816 |journal=Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research |volume=70 |number=70 |pages=11–1 |year=1938|jstor=1354816 |s2cid=163271014}}</ref><ref>W. F. Albright, "A Reëxamination of the Lachish Letters," ''Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research'', no. 73, pp. 16–21, 1939</ref>

====LMLK seals====
{{Main|LMLK seal}}

Another major contribution to [[Biblical archaeology]] from excavations at Lachish are the [[LMLK seal]]s, which were stamped on the handles of a particular form of ancient storage jar, meaning "of the king". More of these artifacts were found at this site (over 400; Ussishkin, 2004, pp.&nbsp;2151–2159) than any other place in [[Israel]] ([[Jerusalem]] remains in second place with more than 300). Most of them were collected from the surface during [[James Leslie Starkey|Starkey]]'s excavations, but others were found in Level 1 ([[Persian Empire|Persia]]n and [[Hellenistic Greece|Greek]] era), Level 2 (period preceding [[Babylonia]]n conquest by [[Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon|Nebuchadnezzar]]), and Level 3 (period preceding [[Assyria]]n conquest by [[Sennacherib]]). It is thanks to the work of [[David Ussishkin]]'s team that eight of these stamped jars were restored, thereby demonstrating lack of relevance between the jar volumes (which deviated as much as 5 [[gallon]]s or 12 [[litre]]s), and also proving their relation to the reign of Biblical king [[Hezekiah]].<ref name="Ussishkin_Royal_1976">{{cite journal |first=David |last=Ussishkin |title=Royal Judean Storage Jars and Private Seal Impressions |journal=Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research |volume=223 |issue=223 |pages=1–13 |year=1976|doi=10.2307/1356716 |jstor=1356716 |s2cid=163180781}} (Chapter 29, Section B in the Lachish final excavation report)</ref> Ussishkin observed that "The renewed excavations confirmed Tufnell's suggestion that Level III had been destroyed in 701 BCE. All the royal storage jars, stamped and unstamped alike, date to the reign of Hezekiah, to shortly before the Assyrian conquest."<ref>{{cite journal |first=David |last=Ussishkin |title=The Destruction of Lachish by Sennacherib and the Dating of the Royal Judean Storage Jars |doi=10.1179/033443577788497777 |journal=Tel Aviv |volume=4 |issue=1–2 |pages=28–60 |year=1977}}</ref>

==Fake Darius inscription==
In 2022, [[Eylon Levy]], an adviser to the Israeli president [[Isaac Herzog]], found an inscribed [[potsherd]] while visiting Tel Lachish. The sherd bore an [[Aramaic]] inscription that read "Year 24 of Darius," which if genuine would have indicated a date of 498 BCE. The find appeared significant, because it would have been the first time that an inscription bearing the name of [[Darius the Great]] had been found in the territory of [[Yehud Medinata]], then a province of the [[Achaemenid Empire]] ruled by Darius.<ref name="ToA">{{Cite web |last=Lidman |first=Melanie |title=Hiker discovers 2,500-year-old ancient receipt from reign of Purim king's father |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/hiker-discovers-2500-year-old-ancient-receipt-from-reign-of-purim-kings-father/ |access-date=2023-03-13 |website=Times of Israel}}</ref> Levy reported it to [[Saar Ganor]] of the [[Israel Antiquities Authority]]—the director of excavations at Tel Lachish—who concluded after laboratory testing that the sherd was authentic, probably a receipt for goods received or shipped.<ref name= ToA/><ref name=JC>{{Cite web |last=Ben-David |first=Daniel |title=Major Israeli archeology discovery found to be fake |url=https://www.thejc.com/news/israel/major-israeli-archeology-discovery-found-to-be-fake-6sizbRufvsJNoRkT6lYt8M |access-date=2023-03-13 |website=www.thejc.com}}</ref> This led to widespread coverage of the find in the international press.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Derome |first=Emma |date=2023-03-06 |title=Une "ancienne" inscription perse découverte en Israël date en fait... de l'été dernier |url=https://www.caminteresse.fr/histoire/une-ancienne-inscription-perse-date-en-fait-de-lete-dernier-sexcusent-les-archeologues-11187787/ |access-date=2023-03-13 |website=Ça m'intéresse |language=fr}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=i24NEWS |title=2,500-year-old potsherd with inscription bearing name of Persian King Darius found in Israel |url=https://www.i24news.tv/en/news/israel/archeology/1677661009-first-inscription-bearing-persian-king-darius-name-found-in-israel |access-date=2023-03-13 |website=I24news |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Staff |first=J. I. |date=2023-03-01 |title=Daily Kickoff: Taylor Force Act, round two + Vermont's Welch on Israel visit |url=https://jewishinsider.com/2023/03/daily-kickoff-taylor-force-act-round-two-vermonts-welch-on-israel-visit/ |access-date=2023-03-13 |website=Jewish Insider |language=en-US}}</ref>

Subsequently the Israel Antiquities Authority issued a statement saying that the sherd was not authentic and had been created by an expert demonstrating inscription techniques to her students. She had come forward after the publicity surrounding the find, and explained she had used an original scrap of worthless pottery from the site and engraved the writing on it. She then discarded it at the tourist section.{{clarify |What is "the tourist section"? NB: All of the tell is accessible to visitors. |date=April 2024}}<ref>{{Cite web |title=Israel artifact bearing name of King Darius the Great revealed as fake |url=https://www.jpost.com/archaeology/article-733292 |access-date=2023-03-13 |website=The Jerusalem Post |date=3 March 2023 |language=en-US}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[Archaeology of Israel]]
*[[List of cities of the ancient Near East]]
*[[List of inscriptions in biblical archaeology]]
*[[Lachish relief]]

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==Further reading==
*{{cite book |editor-last=Aḥituv|editor-first=Shmuel|translator=Naphtali H. Tur-Sinai |title=The Lachish Ostraca - Letters of the Time of Jeremiah|publisher=The Bialik Institute; The Israel Exploration Society |date=1987 |location=Jerusalem|language=he |isbn=965-342-509-9}}
* [[Olga Tufnell|Tufnell, Olga]], [[Margaret Murray|Margaret, Margaret A.]], [[David Diringer|Diringer, David]], "Lachish III (Tell ed-Duweir). The Iron age", London-New York-Toronto : [[Oxford University Press]], 1953. {{OCLC|759757570}}
*[[Richard David Barnett|Barnett, R. D.]] "The Siege of Lachish." Israel Exploration Journal, vol. 8, pp.&nbsp;161–164, 1958
*[[Frederick Jones Bliss|Bliss, Frederick]]. ''Numerous artifact drawings, also "Layer by Layer" drawings of'' [[Tell el-Hesi|Tell el-Hesy]]. Also an original attempt of the only el Amarna letter found at site, [[Amarna Letters]], EA 333. ''A Mound of Many Cities; or Tell El Hesy Excavated,'' by Frederick Jones Bliss, PhD., explorer to the Fund, 2nd Edition, Revised. (The Committee of the [[Palestine Exploration Fund]].) c 1898.
*{{cite book | author=Grena, G.M. | year=2004 | title=LMLK--A Mystery Belonging to the King vol. 1 | location=Redondo Beach, California | publisher=4000&nbsp;Years of Writing History | isbn=097-487-860-X }}
*{{Cite journal |title=The Level V City Wall at Lachish |journal=Palestine Exploration Quarterly |last1=Kang |first1=Hoo-Goo |issue=2 |volume=155 |pages=135–145 |last2=Chang |first2=Sang-Yeup |doi=10.1080/00310328.2022.2122311 |year=2023 |last3=Garfinkel |first3=Yosef|s2cid=255666685 }}
*Magrill, Pamela, ''A researcher's guide to the Lachish collection in the British Museum'', 2006, British Museum Research Publication 161, {{ISBN|0861591615}}, [https://www.britishmuseum.org/research/publications/research_publications_series/2006/the_lachish_collection.aspx fully available online]
*{{cite book|last1=Robinson|first1=E.|author-link1=Edward Robinson (scholar)|last2=Smith|first2=E.|author-link2=Eli Smith|year=1841|url=http://archive.org/details/biblicalresearc00smitgoog |title=Biblical Researches in Palestine, Mount Sinai and Arabia Petraea: A Journal of Travels in the year 1838|  location=Boston|publisher=[[Crocker & Brewster]]|volume=2}} (p. [https://archive.org/details/biblicalresearc00smitgoog/page/n410/mode/1up 388] ff)
*Arlene M. Rosen, Environmental Change and Settlement at Tel Lachish Israel, Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, no. 263, pp.&nbsp;55–60, 1986
*[[David Ussishkin|Ussishkin, D.]], The Renewed Archaeological Excavations at Lachish (1973–1994), Volumes I-V, Monographs of the Institute of Archaeology vol. 22, Tel Aviv University, 2004, {{ISBN|9652660175}}
*{{cite journal | author = David Ussishkin | title = The City Walls of Lachish: Response to Yosef Garfinkel, Michael Hasel, Martin Klingbeil and Their Colleagues | journal = Palestine Exploration Quarterly | year = 2023 | volume = 155 | issue = 1 | pages = 91–110 | doi = 10.1080/00310328.2022.2033484| s2cid = 246545803 }}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Tel Lachish}}
*[https://phys.org/news/2022-11-sentence-written-canaanite-language-plea.html First sentence ever written in Canaanite language discovered: A plea to eradicate beard lice - Phys.org - November 8, 2022]
*[http://jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=10&letter=L&search=Lachish Jewish Encyclopedia: Lachish]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20111001014758/http://bigbible.org/israel/lakish/index.html Photo gallery of Lachish (Tell ed-Duweir)]
*[http://www.lmlk.com/research/lmlk_reliefs.htm Images of the Assyrian Reliefs of Lachish]
*[http://holyland-pictures.com/tag/shephela-judea/lachish/ Pictures of Tel Lachish]
*[https://dx.doi.org/10.11141/ia.9.8 A Late Bronze Age Potter's Workshop at Lachish, Israel] in Internet Archaeology {{Doi|10.11141/ia.9.8}}

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