SUMMARY: Researchers have wondered how the millions of Jewish pilgrims made their way up the Temple to worship. Now they know, after uncovering a massive stairway that lay buried underground for 2,000 years. Spectacular finds were uncovered in the excavation that is one of the most unique in the history of archaeology. This is the first of a 2-part series on the Pilgrim’s Road.
A Song of Ascents. Of David.
I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the LORD!” Our feet have been standing within your gates, O Jerusalem! – Psalm 122:1 (ESV)
Walkway Connected Pool of Siloam and Jerusalem’s Temple 2,000 Years Ago
One of the most sensational announcements from the Holy Land this summer was announced at the end of June in the City of David. Of all the major discoveries in Jerusalem in recent years (and over the last century), this may be the most significant. After nearly 2,000 years of being buried under the earth and rubble of Jerusalem, archaeologists believe they have uncovered a portion of the ancient walkway that millions of Jewish people and other visitors took on their way up to the Temple in the first century AD.
Most of these pilgrims came in obedience to the command to gather for the worship of Israel’s God at this central religious center during the three high holidays of the Jewish year – Passover in the spring, Shavuot (the “Feast of Weeks” or “First Fruits” or “Pentecost”) 50 days later, and Sukkot (the “Festival of Booths” or “Feast of Tabernacles”) in the fall. During the three pilgrimage festivals, every able Jewish male was required to make the trek to the Temple where sacrifices were offered.
The broad roadway was the main route leading from the pool of Siloam, where worshipers would ritually cleanse themselves, up the 700-yard climb to the Temple, ending at the Western Wall – the same Temple location today as existed 2,000 years ago. The project was led by the Israel Antiquities Authority and funded by the City of David Foundation, who plan to open up the site to the general public in the near future.
“The places and events and peoples that make Jerusalem, Jerusalem for Christians, for Jews, it all happened here. It happened here in the City of David,” Zeev Orenstein, Director of International Affairs at the City of David Foundation told CBN News.
“This is where the beating heart of Jerusalem is. We’re talking about the Pool of Siloam, we’re talking about Mt. Moriah, the Temple Mount. We’re talking about the City of David. The Pilgrimage Road links them all together.”
The unveiling ceremony at the City of David was attended by dignitaries from the United States and Israel. Because of its connection to the history of the Jewish people, the announcement of this discovery has also tapped into a political powder keg of reactions.
An Ancient Stairway 25 Feet Wide that Jesus may have Walked
Extensive archaeological excavation to reveal the historic route has been going on for six years at what is being called the “Pilgrim’s Road,” or the “Pilgrimage Road,” with the first 350 yards being completed recently.
While traces of the street had previously been found at the top end of the route near the Temple, the main discovery came by accident in 2004 when a sewer pipe that ran under a potato field ruptured. The field lay just southeast of the walls of the Old City, which today is part of the Arab Silwan neighborhood. As told by The Jerusalem Post, when workers came to repair it (accompanied by archaeologists as is standard protocol in this area) they could see several wide stairs that were exposed. The find led to the fantastic discovery of the nearby ancient pool or “mikveh” of Siloam.
Siloam was the site of Jesus’ famous healing of the blind man in John 9:1-9. The Pilgrim’s road was likely the way he and his disciples ascended from the lower levels of the city up to the Temple, along with the rest of the throngs.
As the excavations continued under the oversight of Frankie Schneider, an impressive street with large stone paving slabs 25 feet wide began to be uncovered from Siloam northward. To date, the southern half of the 700-yard road up to the Temple has been dug out. Along this route, about 250 yards are intact and paved with the grand stones. About 100 meters are missing the paving, with researchers thinking they were either stolen or those sections were never completed.
An Unprecedented Underground Excavation
Excavation of the Pilgrim’s road is unique because for most of its length the archaeological dig has been going on underground, and beneath the busy Silwan neighborhood above it. For years, archaeologists have been digging horizontally in tunnel-like fashion beneath the modern streets and houses.
The difficult situation required steel support beams to be installed every few feet to reinforce the ceiling above. The cost of the operation has already run into the hundreds of millions of dollars, funded by the Israeli government and private donors.
Doron Spielman, vice president of the City of David Foundation, in an op-ed in the Times of Israel wrote the following:
“The discovery of the Pilgrimage Road was an unprecedented scientific feat of biblical proportions” “…Unlike most archaeological digs which begin from the ground down, this excavation was done subterraneously, beneath the hustle and bustle of modern Jerusalem,” he wrote. “Dozens of fiber optic cable cameras were used to decipher where to excavate, while maps and diagrams made by archaeologists over the last century and a half paved the way forward,” Spielman added.
Dating the Road
The street had been given the name “Herodian road” because it was believed to have been built by Herod the Great as part of his massive upgrade to the Second Temple. The Bible has the First Temple being built by King Solomon around 1000 BC, and being destroyed about 400 years later by the Babylonians. The Second Temple, begun in the era of Ezra and Nehemiah, had its beginnings in the 400s BC and went through several phases before being expanded by Herod and then destroyed by the Romans in AD 70.
The name “Herodian,” however, will need to be dropped, since evidence has turned up that the monumental aspects of this road were built over a period of about 10 years and were completed around AD 30, about three decades after Herod’s death. It was apparently built under the oversight of Roman governor Pontius Pilate, who is known for sentencing Jesus to crucifixion. See this previous Thinker Update for the discovery of the possible site of Jesus’ trial.
According to the researchers: “This conclusion, in fact, sheds light on the history of Jerusalem in the late Second Temple period and strengthens the recognition of the importance of the rule of the Roman procurators in shaping the image of Jerusalem.” See the oldest known stone inscription of Jerusalem in Hebrew.
This also means the final magnificent phase of the road lasted only about 40 years before being covered by debris and earth for nearly 2,000 years beginning with the violent destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70.
VIDEO From CITY OF DAVID and YOUTUBE (this has a share button on it, at the City of David website)
More than a Road
As they ascended the road to the Temple, many pilgrims may have sung one of the songs of ascents recorded in the Book of Psalms (see verse at the top of the article).
“The word in the Bible, the Hebrew word, is Aliyah b’regel, oleh regel. Now what we understand that to mean is that it’s a spiritual ascent, going up to Jerusalem, going up to the Temple. It’s a very holy place,” Orenstein explained in the CBN article. “But, when you’re in the place where the Bible happened, the words of the Bible come to life,” he said pointing out that the road actually goes uphill.
And there was more to the road than that.
“This would have been a Times Square. We would have had on both sides of the road, keep in mind the road is about three, four or five times wider than what we see. You would have had shops, stalls along both sides of the road. This is the center of Jerusalem from a spiritual perspective, from a communal perspective, also from a commerce perspective,” he said.
It is interesting to note that the stairs are built in a unique repeating pattern of two steps followed by a long landing. An interesting find was a raised platform built on the side of the road, which researchers believe served as a place for announcements or speeches.
“This is unique in all of Jerusalem,” Orenstein said. “Anyone who had a political or religious message would stand on the podium and address the masses that were on their way to the Temple.”
Discovery of Jewelry, Coins, a Ring and a Golden Bell
Over many years of excavation, coins, cooking pots, earthenware and stone vessels, jewelry, perfume bottles, and many other artifacts have been unearthed along the road and in the drainage ditch below it. Many were shown to the public for the first time during the announcement proceedings.
Additionally, researchers found an intriguing, one-of-a-kind gold bell in the drainage channel of the road. It had a loop at its edge so it could be sewn onto the hem of a garment. Researchers believe it may have even accidentally broken loose from the tunic of the high priest himself as he made his way up to the Temple.
They also made bells of pure gold, and put the bells between the pomegranates all around the hem of the robe, between the pomegranates. – Exodus 39:25 (ESV)
Another find was a crudely drawn depiction of a menorah, perhaps carved by a child who had just seen it at the temple.
Open for the Public to Visit
Plans are for the 350 yards in the bottom half of the Pilgrim’s Road to be open to the public shortly. The entire 700-yard ascent from the Pool of Siloam to the Western wall of the Temple should be open within five years. For the first time in 2,000 years, visitors will be able to walk the stones that Jesus and millions of Jewish pilgrims walked on and get a firsthand experience of what it was like to go up to worship the God of Israel in the First century.
In Part 2 of this article, next week’s Thinker Update will highlight some of the other finds in the Pilgrim’s Road excavation, including clear evidence of the city’s destruction by the Romans. It will also show some of the fallout and reactions to these discoveries in this politically sensitive area.
“These findings show that the connection between the Jewish people and the ancient City of Jerusalem is a matter of fact and not a matter of faith,” Orenstein said. The same could be said for the veracity of the history found in the biblical account. – Keep Thinking!
TOP PHOTO: The Pilgrimage Road, dating to the Second Temple period. (Credit: Kobi Harati, City of David)
