Sennacherib was the king of the Neo-Assyrian Empire from the death of his father Sargon II in 705 BCE to his own death in 681 BCE. The second king of the Sargonid dynasty, Sennacherib is one of the most famous Assyrian kings for the role he plays in the Hebrew Bible, which describes his campaign in the Levant. Other events of his reign include his destruction of the city of Babylon in 689 BCE and his renovation and expansion of the last great Assyrian capital, Nineveh.
Recent excavations in Jerusalem’s Mordot Arnona neighborhood have revealed indirect evidence of the renowned Assyrian military campaign, famously documented in both Biblical and Assyrian records. The Israel Antiquities Authority, with funding from the Israel Land Authority, discovered two administrative buildings constructed one above the other at the site.
The older building predates the Assyrian campaign of 701 BCE, while the newer structure was built in the early 7th century BCE, shortly after Assyria suppressed King Hezekiah’s rebellion. Archaeologists uncovered more than 180 storage jar handles bearing stamp impressions with Hebrew inscriptions, many of which read “(belonging) to the king” – a reference to the Kingdom of Judah.
The site reveals significant changes in the Judahite administration during King Hezekiah’s reign, specifically in the aftermath of the Assyrian campaign that followed Judah’s rebellion. Until this discovery, evidence of Sennacherib’s campaign had only been found in the Judean Lowlands (Shephelah).
These recent excavations indicate that the original Judahite administrative structure that existed on this site was completely destroyed.
“We discovered remains of a significant royal administrative center from the days of King Hezekiah, and perhaps even from the reign of his father, King Ahaz,” say Neria Sapir, Natan Ben-Ari and Benyamin Storchan, excavation directors on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority. “The center functioned in the last third of the 8th century BCE but was destroyed down to its foundations and buried under a massive heap of stones. The stone pile formed a platform upon which subsequent structure was erected, holding a commanding view of all the agricultural areas to the east of the Armon Ha-Natziv – Ramat Rachel ridge, and could be seen from afar. Large building stones originating from the early structure were deliberately incorporated into the heap.”
“We interpret these dramatic changes as a statement by the Assyrian imperial government, intended to convey a political-diplomatic message to the surrounding region and make it clear ‘who is really in charge’ by overhauling the administrative structure and its function. As the Assyrians were still interested in the agricultural produce and taxes Judah could provide, they did allow for the existence of an independent Judahite administration, but rather intensified its heavy economic demands.”
The administrative activity of Judah included the concentration and management of the agricultural produce farmers used to pay taxes to the kingdom. The produce was transported and delivered in large ceramic storage jars – perhaps also stored here as a reserve for times of scarcity. In addition, wine, and possibly olive oil, were produced here in the Mordot Arnona neighborhood.
Evidence of the changes in the Judahite administration after Sennacherib’s military campaign found in Mordot Arnona include the discovery of an array of jar handles with stamp impressions. The long chronology of the seal assemblage portrays Mordot Arnona’s significance and continuity across changing administrative stages.
Dating from the 8th century BCE onwards, dozens of lmlk– ‘(belonging) to the king’ stamp impressions were discovered here, as well as 17 handles with ‘private’ names written in Hebrew script. Among the names on the ‘private’ jar-handle stamps are Menachem Yubna (lmnḥm/ywbnh), Peqach Tavra (lṗqḥ/tbr’), andTzophen Azaryahu (ṣpn.ʿ/zryhw).
Who were these people? Were they the elite estate landowners who were the drivers of the kingdom’s economy; or, were perhaps senior Judahite officials? The findings from Arnona, which will be published together with a team of researchers from Tel Aviv University led by Prof. Oded Lipschits, strengthen the hypothesis that the ‘private’ stamp impressions are part of a short-lived administrative system, operating before Sennacherib’s military campaign – as part of the Kingdom of Judah’s preparations, led by King Hezekiah, to rebel against Assyria, at which time taxes to the Assyrian Empire ceased to be paid out.
From the beginning of the 7th century BCE onward, the “lmlk” stamp impressions differ from the earlier types and mark the return of Assyrian taxation in the aftermath of Sennacherib’s campaign.
