Almost 3,000 years after the supposed demolition of a majorPhilistinecity , the event – which is mentioned in theOld Testament – has finally been corroborate thanks to a new technique that detects ancient magnetic fields in burnt bricks . In addition to sustain that a building in the area was indeed ravaged by a fervour , the research also settles the argument over whether or not the Biblical denizen of the Levant had developed the technology to give the sack mud bricks in a kiln .
fit in to the Second Book of Kings , the mighty urban center of Gath was catch and ransacked by the forces of Hazael , king of Aram - Damascus . Radiocarbon date of a “ well - delimitate end level ” within the archaeological land site of Tel E - Safi has since suggested that the effect took place around 830 BCE .
However , in2011 , an depth psychology of a tumble wall within the Tel muddied the picture show somewhat , as the generator determined that the structure had crumbled over many decades rather than in a individual violent event . They went on to advise that while the mud bricks point preindication of having been exposed to high temperatures , this probably occurred when they were fired in a kiln prior to the wall ’s grammatical construction .
The destroyed wall in the ancient Philistine city of Gath.Image credit: Tell es-Safi/Gath Archaeological Project, Bar-Ilan University
Such an rendition is at betting odds with the widely accepted notion that kiln - kindle clay bricks only became far-flung in the Levant during Romanic times , and that prior to this , structures were typically built withsun - dried brick . In an attempt to straighten thing out , the generator of a new study modernize a new method to determine whether ancient material were subjected to kindling .
Describing the method in astatement , study author Dr Yoav Vaknin explained , " The clay from which the bricks were made contains million of ferromagnetic particles – minerals with magnetic properties that deport like so many tiny ' ambit ' or magnet . ”
“ heat up to 200 ° nose candy [ 392 ° F ] or more , as happen in a fire , exhaust the magnetic signals of these magnetic particles and , statistically , they tend to array with the Earth ’s magnetic field at that specific time and place , ” he said . Thus , unlike Dominicus - dry out clay , a fired brick “ attains a hard and uniformly orient magnetic field , which can be measured with a gaussmeter . This is a clear indicant that the brick has , in fact , been evoke . ”
It therefore stands to cause that if the paries wasdestroyed in a fervor , all of the bricks would have read the direction of the Earth ’s magnetic field at the precise time and place of the event . Of naturally , kiln - fired brick also piece up this magnetic field of view as they are fired ; yet during the wall ’s construction , each brick would have been laid in a random orientation course , imply that they would have finish up withmagnetic fieldspointing in multiple directions .
To determine whether the bricks ’ fields were aligned or not , the study author used a technique call thermal demagnetization . This involves heating the clay in a special oven that countervail the Earth ’s magnetized field .
During this process , the material becomes demagnetise when bring out to the same temperature that in the beginning caused it to mesmerise . Using this method acting , the investigator were able to determine the accurate temperatures that the brick were initially heated to , while also confirming that their magnetic fields all pointed in the same direction .
" Our findings signify that the bricks burned and cooled down in - situ , decently where they were determine , namely in a conflagration in the complex body part itself , which collapsed within a few hours , ” explain Vaknin . “ Had the brick been fired in a kiln and then laid in the bulwark , their charismatic orientations would have been random . ”
In addition to corroborating theBiblical accountof the city ’s devastation , the study also exemplify that the bricks were sun - dried and not kiln - fire . The approximation that such technology only arrived with the Romans is therefore supported .
" Our finding indicate that the brick dismissal technology was probably not practice in the Land of Israel in the times of the Rex of Judah and Israel , " concludes study writer Erez Ben - Yosef .
The study is published in the journalPLOS ONE .
