A Unique Structure Discovered in the City of David – The Only One of Its Kind Found in Jerusalem, Used for Ritual Practices, During the Time of the First Temple

Amazing stuff! Religion and wine, what a combination made in heaven! 😊

From the abstract:

"This paper presents the finds retrieved from a unique series of rock-cut rooms found on the eastern slope of the City of David. These rock-cut rooms stand out in terms of their architectural features, as well as the artifacts discovered within them, all of which reflect on their function as a cultic complex, likely constructed in the Middle Bronze Age, with its final stage in Iron Age IIB. This complex offers profound evidence for the diversity of cultic practices in the capital of the Kingdom of Judah."

A New Study Determines: A Unique Structure Discovered in the City of David – The Only One of Its Kind Found in Jerusalem, Used for Ritual Practices, During the Time of the First Temple "A unique structure, uncovered by the Israel Antiquities Authority on the eastern slope of the City of David, within the Jerusalem Walls National Park, features eight rock-hewn rooms containing an altar, a standing stone (masseba), an oil press, and a winepress. In a new article published in the scientific journal ‘Atiqot, excavation director Eli Shukron suggests that the structure was used by the residents of Judah for cultic/religious practice."

Credits: Researchers Uncover Ancient Worship Site Near First Temple in Jerusalem

Evidence of Worship in the Rock-Cut Rooms on the Eastern Slope of the City of David, Jerusalem (open access)

An oil press and a winepress nearby: used for producing small quantities of oil and wine for ritual purposes.

Proposed reconstruction of the ritual structure