Photos: Biblical Gate Shrine Uncovered in Israel's Tel Lachish National Park

By Christine Lunsford
published

More authority

Tel Lachish gate-shrine

(Image credit: Yoli Shwartz, courtesy of the Israel Antiquities Authority)

A team member inspects a jar handle with the inscription lmlk hbrn — which means belonging to the king of Hebron.

Desecration at its clearest

Tel Lachish gate-shrine

(Image credit: Courtesy of the Israel Antiquities Authority)

Experts think a toilet was placed at this location to end cultic worship at the gate shrine.

A strange find

Tel Lachish gate-shrine

(Image credit: Igor Kramerman)

Team members remove the toilet from the gate shrine.

Sitting at the gates

Tel Lachish gate-shrine

(Image credit: Sa'ar Ganor, courtesy of the Israel Antiquities Authority)

The excavation offers evidence of biblical accounts of elders, judges, governors and kings sitting at the gates of the city.

[Read the Story About the Recent Excavation.]