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Ancient Jericho

A view of Tell es-Sultan, the site of ancient Jericho. Photograph by Tamar Hayardeni.

Tell es-Sultan, or ancient Jericho, is the oldest continuously inhabited settlement in the ancient Near East, dating back more than 11,000 years. Rich soil and abundant fresh water make the site ideal for habitation. Jericho features prominently in the Bible. In the book of Joshua, Joshua and the Israelites capture the city of Jericho. The road between Jerusalem and Jericho is the setting for the parable of the Good Samaritan in the New Testament. The Gospels state that Jesus passed through Jericho, where he healed a blind man. Jericho has a rich nonbiblical history, too; it once served as the private estate for Alexander the Great. During Roman rule, Mark Antony gifted Jericho to Cleopatra.  Today Jericho is held under Israeli occupation with administrative control by the Palestinian Authority.

 

A view of Tell es-Sultan, the site of ancient Jericho.

A Macedonian (Greek) general who conquered the Persians and ruled over a vast empire, from Greece to the Indus River, in the 330s B.C.E.

A region notable for its early ancient civilizations, geographically encompassing the modern Middle East, Egypt, and modern Turkey.

A collection of first-century Jewish and early Christian writings that, along with the Old Testament, makes up the Christian Bible.

Belonging to the ancient region of Israel and Judah, derived from the Latin name for the Roman province of Palaestina.

An alternate spelling for "tel" meaning a mound or hill-shaped site containing several occupational layers one on top of the other over milennia.

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