Dig backs biblical account of Philistine city of Gat
By Amiram Barkat
New evidence regarding the bitter end of Gat, the largest and most important Philistine city, was recently unearthed at a dig at Tel Zafit near the Masmia intersection in the Lachish region. According to Kings II (12:18), Gat was conquered by King Hazael of Aram. He intended to capture Jerusalem as well, but King Jehoash of Judah saved the capital while losing treasure taken from the Temple (Kings II 14:14). Findings at the dig support the biblical version of Gat's demise as described in Kings II.
An enormous trench surrounded by towers was found at the dig, which was apparently built during the siege of the city. The archaeologists say that findings at the site reveal the unique method employed by the Arameans to seize the city and the destruction that Aramean soldiers left in their wake. Other artifacts shed light on the culture of the Philistines, one of the most fascinating peoples that lived in ancient Israel.
The Philistines controlled the southern coastal plain for close to 600 years. Their best-known contribution was to the Roman name for the Land of Israel, "Palestina," which is derived from the Greek name "Paleshet," the land of the Philistines. (There is no connection between the Philistines and modern Palestinians.)
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Battles between the Philistines and their Jewish neighbors are mentioned in biblical stories of David and Goliath, King Saul and Samson. Modern Hebrew words such as kova (hat) and argaz (crate) are apparently derived from the Philistine language.
The Philistine people are particularly interesting to researchers because they were Indo-Europeans, while the people of Israel and others in the area were Semites. The language, culture and origins of the Philistines were thus different from that of their neighbors. Unlike Semitic peoples, the Philistines did not practice circumcision and were therefore referred to as "foreskins" in ancient sources. Their lesser-known customs included eating puppies and pigs.
Gat, the city of Goliath, was the most important of five local cities built by the Philistines, including Ekron, Ashkelon, Ashdod and Gaza. Gat apparently was a significant city, whose leader was called a king. Leaders of other Philistine cities were called rulers. At its peak, Gat had a population of 10,000 residents, like the population of Jerusalem on the eve of the destruction of the First Temple.
The most impressive finding uncovered in the dig at Gat is a 2.5-kilometer moat carved in stone that surrounded the walls of the city at a radius of 300 meters. Professor Aaron Meir, who directed the dig on behalf of Bar-Ilan University, estimates that it took thousands of workers many months to dig the stone moat, which is five meters deep and four meters wide. The moat, flanked along its entire length by guard towers, was erected to prevent besieged residents from breaking out to get food or mount a surprise attack on their captors.
An estimated 60,000 cubic meters of rock were chiseled to create the moat. According to Meir, this is the most ancient blockade discovered in this part of the world. He says that the structure exactly fits a description in an Aramean text from this period discovered in the city of Zahor in Syria.
The ruins of houses that fell in their entirety were found inside the city of Gat, which covered about 500 dunams. A large variety of vessels and a vast array of artifacts used in writing and rituals were found, revealing various aspects of Philistine culture.
One of the most important discoveries is a text in clay that includes Philistine names. While the text is written in local Phoenician, the names appear to be Greek in origin. According to Meir, this is rare proof of assimilation in Philistine society. "On one hand, they preserved their religion, language, and other central, distinguishing characteristics but, on the other, they adopted local customs and styles to a significant extent," says Meir.
The end of the Philistines came about 200 years after the destruction of Gat. Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzer conquered their land and dispersed their nation throughout Babylon. Their neighbors, the Judahites, were also dispersed. But unlike the Jews, evidence of the Philistines vanished in Babylon.
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