Erasing the past: Temple Mount destruction update

Some things just escape me. Ariel Sharon visits the Wailing Wall and all hell breaks loose. The Islamic Waqf illegally removes truckload after truckload of artifact-laden soil from the too-sacred-to-excavate Temple Mount, and no one dares to make a peep.

This is an ongoing story, and it should be repeated front page news, accompanied by howls of outrage from all quarters. Yet the silence echoes on, even among archeologists and religious leaders.

Just how rich the destroyed archeological deposits were is being demonstrated by the excavation of the dumped soil -- a project the Israeli government would not undertake, and probably wishes would just go away. According to this recent article, significant Jewish finds relating to the Temple have been made. The article should really be read in full, and I will confine my excerpts to the following:

During the illegal excavations and dumping on and from the Temple Mount, the police and the government Antiquities Authority refused to interfere, citing concerns of violence by Muslims who deny that Temples ever stood on the Temple Mount. Tzachi Zweig, then an archaeology student, called a press conference to publicize the extent of the archaeological havoc being perpetrated. Zweig caused a stir in the media by displaying an assortment of artifacts that he had easily scooped out of the piles. . .

The dirt itself into which the Waqf had mixed garbage was meanwhile ignored, and the Antiquities Authority refused to fund an examination of the tons of rubble. . .

Because such a sensitive excavation of material had never before taken place, and because the material had been purposely mixed with garbage and other matter, Zweig and Barkai had a difficult time estimating how much time the excavation would take. Despite six months of work, to date only 15% of the rubble has been examined. . .

They now estimate that it will take four more months to finish sifting all of the material, but their initial grant of $65,000 has nearly run out. $61,000 more is needed to finish the project, something the two say could be accomplished by the end of the summer using the methods they now use.

Considering the importance of this work, the amount needed is paltry. The article provides this contact address for those interested in helping support the excavation: zachifm@miac.com.

Via Palaeojudaica, which has been giving this story continuous attention (along with the closely related issue of Temple denial).

Posted by David on April 21, 2005 11:07 AM