Archaeologists have discovered the ruins of a 2,800-year-old palace at a site where a Biblical prophet was said to have wrestled with God.
Stone blocks with carvings of lions and lavish feasts were uncovered at the site of Tulul ed-Dhahab in Transjordan, which researchers believe ‘may be the biblical Mahanaim.’
Mahanaim is said to be where Jacob, one of the fathers of the Jewish nation, grappled with God from sundown to dawn.
The ruins are likely from the Kingdom of Israel, aligning with scripture that suggests ancient Israelites once controlled the region.
Although the palace has not yet been fully excavated, the team believes it was a rectangular-shaped residence built on a platform by Jeroboam II, the 13th king of Israel, who is also mentioned in the Bible.
A total of 10 blocks were uncovered at the site, with one showing a man carrying a goat as part of a banquet scene, and another featuring two standing lyre players.
Others were etched with horses, date-palm trees, and one was carved into the head of a lion.
Professor Israel Finkelstein of Haifa University said that the newly found ruins provide more clues as to why key foundational biblical stories were set in this area.
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Archaeologists have discovered the ruins of a 2,800-year-old palace at a site where Jacob was said to have wrestled with God
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The study also suggested that the two blocks featuring the lion heads were likely at the entrance of the residence, protecting the gate
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Mahanaim, mentioned 13 times in the Old Testament, holds profound significance in biblical narratives.
The name means ‘two camps’ in Hebrew and first appears in Genesis 32:2.
‘When Jacob saw them, he said, ‘This is the camp of God!’ So he named that place Mahanaim,’ the verse reads.
Archaeologists were working at two nearby hills by the Zarka River, which historians believe was the biblical Jabbok.
The western hill, now called Tall adh-Dhahab al-Gharbi, contains remains of an ancient town that saw activity during several historical periods.
Archaeologists also uncovered part of a building from the Herodian period, which may have been part of the Hellenistic and Roman site known as Amathus, indicating the location’s continued importance well into the Roman period.
The adjacent hill, Penuel, has been said to be where Jacob wrestled with an angel and named the site after seeing the ‘face of God.’
Seven of the blocks revealed ‘iconographic features or themes that are to be considered elements of public architecture of either a palace or an elaborate gate, most probably component/s of a governmental compound,’ the researchers noted.
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Mahanaim is said to be where Jacob, one of the fathers of the Jewish nation, grappled with God from sundown to dawn
Blocks 4 and 5 featured motifs that were part of war or hunting themes, which were often connected to banquet scenes.
The study noted that similar scenes were found to three motifs from Kuntillet ʿAjrud, which is a late 9th to early 8th century BCE site in the northeast part of the Sinai.
‘The fourth visual theme from Tall adh-Dhahab al-Gharbi to be compared with the imagery from Kuntillet ʿAjrud is the Voluted Tree incised on Block 7, on which only two clear horizontal branches with upturned inward coils of the tree have survived,’ the researchers shared.
+6
View gallery
Although the palace has not yet been fully excavated, the team believes it was a rectangular-shaped residence built on a platform by Jeroboam II, the 13th king of Israel, who is also mentioned in the Bible
+6
View gallery
A total of 10 blocks were uncovered at the site, with one showing a man carrying a goat as part of a banquet scene, and another featuring two standing lyre players
+6
View gallery
One of the slabs featured imagery of a lion’s mane sprawling over the sand stone
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‘The thematic visual associations between Tall adh-Dhahab al-Gharbi’s incised imagery and Kuntillet ʿAjrud’s painted pottery sketches and murals match the attribution of these sites as built by Jeroboam II.’
The reign of Jeroboam II is mentioned in 2 Kings 14:23–29, along with the books of Amos and Hoshea.
The study also suggested that the two blocks featuring the lion heads were likely at the entrance of the residence, protecting the gate.
Similar discoveries have been made at two sites in southern Syria and Jordan.
‘The incised blocks found at Tall adh-Dhahab al-Gharbi, the location of biblical Mahanaim, must have originated from an elaborate Iron Age building that served as an elite residency,’ reads the study.
‘The characteristics of Tall adh-Dhahab ash-Sharqi—its small size, its rectangular layout and possibly the existence of an elevated platform—seem to show that it was not a town, but perhaps a temple compound.’
The researchers stressed that their work does not prove Biblical stories to be true, but that the discoveries show that Israelites lived in the region for thousands of years and provides reasons to why Bible writes used Mahanaim as the location for stories.
