Fortifications of Solomon

In 1 Kings 9:15-22, the Bible talks about the different building projects of Solomon. These building projects have parallels with other Ancient Near Eastern (ANE) kings. Building projects were important theological, and political statements in the ANE. This view is also reflected in the Bible.
The Ishtar gate is an impressive edifice. This is one to strike those who visit Babylon with awe, as Nebuchadnezzar himself writes in the inscription.

The East India House Inscription details many of Nebuchadnezzar's building projects, and part of this was to show how Nebuchadnezzar was chosen by the gods to accomplish these things.

Hammurapi specially mentions that the people of Sippar are exempted from forced labor. This is mentioned because corvée was the rule, and only exceptions were mentioned.  This map shows Israel in Solomon's day. The blue arrows show the path of the great international trade route. This route is absolutely essential for trade in the ANE. Solomon places his fortifications at key points along this route to protect Israelite interests. The Red Arrows show the east/west paths that lead through Gezer.

The Standing Stones of Gezer date from the Bronze age and were part of the ritual functions of the Canaanite's who settled in Palestine. After the Canaanite layers at Gezer there are some great layers that show Philistine Pottery. Philistine pottery is very distinctive, and here are some good examples. After the Philistine layer is a destruction layer, and then the Gezer Solomonic Gates and then another Destruction layer dated to the second half of the 10th century. This destruction layer dates to Shishaq's invasion of Palestine in 925BC.

The six chambered gate is a huge Gate. The gate had benches upon which the elder's of the city would have set for judgment. And of course, the Gezer Calendar dates to the 10th century, and was found at this site.

Megiddo is at a key juncture between the international trade route and the Jezreel Valley. Megiddo has some hills in the background and also on the plain. The site has been extensively excavated, but not always with the most reliable excavation techniques. From 1925-1939, the University of Chicago tried to excavate the entire site, layer by layer. The ended up giving up on this attempt!

The big round pile of rocks is an altar. Notice it is an altar with un-hewn stone. As the book of Exodus talks about! This altar dates from the Canaanite period, and is surrounded by three temples. The floor plans of the temples at some periods can be found in this places.

The next two pictures of Megiddo show the stables or store houses that date from the tenth century. They can be either store houses or stables depending on which archaeologist you speak with.

The next few pictures show the six chambered gate as it has been reconstructed today.

Hazor is also an an important crossroads. The main trade route goes to Damascus, the secondary one goes to Beirut. The tell at Hazor is huge, about 200 acres. Only the upper tell has been excavated. The first picture from the tell shows the un-excavated lower city on the site. The next picture shows the gate that would have led from the lower city to the upper city. The black stones would have had a small cultic installation. Our budding archaeologist accompanied us to this site!

The gates at Hazor are also really impressive.

The gates at Hazor, Megiddo, and Gezer all have similar layouts, though Hazor has slightly different orientations. The important thing about these sites is that it shows the political and theological authority that Solomon claimed as king of Israel.

Appendix:

The last two sections show Population counts in the 8th century, and the final section shows the development of the Hebrew alphabet. Notice how the DSS show both the Paelo-Hebrew script and the block script of later Hebrew.