17 May 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

2000-year-old quarry discovered in Jerusalem that could be the source of Second temple stones

Archaeologists have discovered a 2,000-year-old quarry in Har Hotzvim, now an industrial park in Jerusalem.

The Israel Antiquities Authority said Sunday that archaeologists excavating in Jerusalem uncovered a 2,000-year-old stone quarry, as well as a variety of enormous building blocks in various phases of pre-construction.

Har Hotzvim, one of Jerusalem’s key hi-tech centers, gets its name – which means “Quarrymen’s Hill” in Hebrew – from a far older industrial activity.

The quarry was uncovered during a salvage excavation before the start of a new construction project. Archaeologists believe the huge quarry unearthed in Har Hotzvim dates to the first century BCE and was active during the time of the Second Temple in Jerusalem.

The excavation’s director on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority Moran Hagbi, “The large-scale building projects in ancient Jerusalem, such as the Temple Mount, required a vast amount of building materials and the ability to organize and coordinate the quarrying and transportation of thousands of building blocks to the ancient city,” he said.

A 2,000-year-old stone quarry discovered in the Jerusalem neighborhood of Har Hotzvim. (Shai Halevi, Israel Antiquities Authority)
A 2,000-year-old stone quarry discovered in the Jerusalem neighborhood of Har Hotzvim. (Shai Halevi, Israel Antiquities Authority)

The partially excavated quarry is 600 square meters in size, but researchers believe it may be two or three times larger.

To better understand how ancient workers operated, scientists plan to recreate tools and techniques known to be used at the time to test their effectiveness. Archaeologists are also considering evaluating the effectiveness of methods mentioned in biblical texts,  the IAA said.

A 2,000-year-old stone quarry discovered in the Jerusalem neighborhood of Har Hotzvim. (Shai Halevi, Israel Antiquities Authority)
Photo: Shai Halevi, Israel Antiquities Authority

“For us as archaeologists, this quarry presents a golden opportunity. Because some of the stones were left in situ in this way, we can copy ancient technologies and experiment with them in order to recreate the processes by which the building stones were quarried,” Hagbi said.

Second Temple
The Second Temple, model in the Israel Museum, 2008. (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)

The period of the Second Temple is known as the period of magnificent construction projects in Jerusalem. In the first century BC, until the city was destroyed by the Romans, Jerusalem completely changed its appearance. The temple was expanded and several monumental buildings and other infrastructure were built. All these tasks required a lot of building materials.

Israel Antiquities Authority’s general director Eli Escosido said: “In a symbolic way, Jerusalem’s current development boom presents us with an opportunity to excavate and research the great building projects in Jerusalem in antiquity.”

Related Articles

Complex Of Early Neolithic Monuments Discovered In Herefordshire, England

22 July 2023

22 July 2023

Archaeologists discovered a remarkable complex of early Neolithic monuments while investigating the area around Dorstone Hill in Herefordshire, England. The...

Ancient helmets, temple ruins found at a dig in Velia southern Italy

1 February 2022

1 February 2022

A discovery that “sheds new light on the history of the mighty Greek colony” by Velia. Archaeologists in southern Italy...

Archaeologists Discovered 8,200-year-old Eyeliner in Türkiye’s Yeşilova Höyük

16 September 2024

16 September 2024

During the archaeological excavations in Yeşilova Höyük (Yeşilova Mound) in Bornova district of Izmir, an 8,200-year-old kohl made of stone...

Egypt discovers five 4,000-year-old ancient tombs in Saqqara necropolis

19 March 2022

19 March 2022

The Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities announced recently the discovery of five 4,000-year-old ancient tombs in the Saqqara archaeological...

New Archaeological Discoveries in Abu Dhabi shed light on Umm an-Nar Bronze Age culture (2700-2000 BCE)

1 February 2024

1 February 2024

New findings demonstrate the resilience and inventiveness of local Bronze Age societies (Umm an-Nar Bronze Age culture), as well as...

Neanderthal Footprints Discovered On the Beach of Matalascañas (Huelva)

4 May 2021

4 May 2021

A stroll along the beach of Matalascanas (Huelva) in June of last year unearthed a spectacular scenario that occurred in...

Archaeologists discovered a 2,000-year-old rock-carved face at Spain’s Tossal de La Cala castle

20 May 2023

20 May 2023

Archaeologists have discovered a rock-carved face at Toscal De La Cala, a Roman fort in Benidorm, on the east coast...

A carved Hand Imprint unearthed in a 1,000-year-old Jerusalem defensive moat

26 January 2023

26 January 2023

The Israel Antiquities Authority announced on Wednesday that archaeologists discovered the remains of a moat and a mysterious hand imprint...

Homo Sapiens are older than we previously thought

16 January 2022

16 January 2022

Researchers have discovered that Omo I skeletons, previously thought to be less than 200,000 years old, are 230,000 years old....

3500-year-old grape seed remains found in western Anatolia

12 September 2023

12 September 2023

Archaeologists at the Aşağıseyit Höyük (Aşağıseyit Mound) site in western Anatolia’s Denizli have uncovered a 3,500-year-old grape seed. Aşağıseyi Höyük...

Neo-Assyrian Writing Boards: The Role of Beeswax, Orpiment, and Carbon Black in 7th Century BC Writing Techniques

13 April 2025

13 April 2025

Recent scientific investigations into the writing boards excavated from the ancient Assyrian city of Nimrud have shed new light on...

Iran wants UNESCO recognition for 56 of its historic caravansaries

10 October 2021

10 October 2021

Iran wants 56 Caravanserais from various periods, from the Sassanids (224 CE-651) to the Qajar period (1789-1925), to be included...

Israeli researchers have found evidence of cooking fish 780,000 years ago at Gesher Benot Ya’aqov

14 November 2022

14 November 2022

Hominins living at Gesher Benot Ya’akov 780,000 years ago liked their fish to be well cooked, Israeli researchers revealed Monday,...

Britain’s Hidden Treasures: The Pieces of Rare Iron Age Helmet Found at Snettisham

19 January 2025

19 January 2025

Thanks to advanced scientific testing, the copper alloy fragments unearthed at Snettisham, Norfolk, at one of Britain’s most significant archaeological...

A new chapter in the Hittite world is revealed by painted hieroglyphs discovered in the Hattusa Yerkapı tunnel

30 April 2024

30 April 2024

The painted hieroglyphs discovered in 2022 in the Yerkapı Tunnel in Hattusa, the capital of the Hittites, one of the...