Analysis of Ancient Israeli Tunnels
Uploaded by KGanzert on Mar 04, 2007
Analysis of Ancient Israeli Tunnels
One of the latest findings in the archeological world was recently revealed to the public on March this year in the village of Kfar Kana, North of Israel. Several subterranean galleries, passageways and pits were discovered leading scholars to believe that they were used as hiding places during the first Jewish war in the middle of the first century A.D. At a first assumption, the tunnels seem they were very well planned in advance. One hypothesis could be that the Hebrews built those tunnels not only as a place of safety but also for protecting their belongings and to preserve their history, similar to the Dead Sea scrolls found in caves. I also believe they were not specifically there for a war against the Romans. The Jewish people have been persecuted since the beginning of times of their history. In some regions of our modern world, they are still not welcome. The hebrews were very protective of their culture, so is more likely that the galleries were constructed to shield themselves not only from Romans but from anyone that could rise against or persecute them any given time.
Throughout the excavations areas, archeologists found several pits not only on the ground but inside homes too. I presume the pits located inside the dwellings were there probably for easier transportation of supplies such as food and household materials, and for a more secure escape in case of a sudden enemy attack. Archeologists also found several jars inside the chambers, commonly used to store food at that time. Yardenna Alexandre, the archeologist in charge of the excavations, said "The pits are connected to each other by short tunnels, and it seems that they were used as hiding refuges—a kind of concealed subterranean home—that were built prior to the Great Revolt against the Romans.” Those people had suffered so much excruciating punishment from enemies through the centuries that if they were sensing a new persecution, it would make perfectly sense to start building secret tunnels to protect themlseves.
Alexandre said he thinks the pits and tunnels were there before the revolt. One of my theories is that...