Archaeologists have discovered wooden beams believed to have been burned during the destruction of the First Temple in 586 BCE, the Israel Antiquities Authority said Monday, ahead of the Tisha B’Av fast this week. It is extremely rare to find preserved wood from the Iron Age in the Land of Israel.

The beams, made of sycamore wood, were unearthed during a recent dig at the Jerusalem Walls National Park in the City of David, in the Givati parking lot, as part of excavations conducted by the IAA and Tel Aviv University, the antiquities authority said. Researchers posited that they served as the roof of an inner courtyard in a building from the First Temple period.

During the destruction of the Temple, which is annually commemorated on Tisha B’Av, the beams likely collapsed onto the floor and were covered by the plaster cladding of the building’s walls, melted by the fire, excavation co-director Efrat Bocher said. She added that this plaster seal is what ultimately enabled their exceptional preservation.

“We are just before Tisha B’Av,” Bocher said. “This discovery makes you feel that you are witnessing the very moment of destruction, the moment when it all happened. It’s deeply moving.”

Tisha B’Av, which this year begins at sundown on Wednesday and ends at nightfall on Thursday, is observed through a fast and special prayers and readings.

Other well-preserved wood from a coniferous tree was found........

© The Times of Israel