PREHISTORIC DAM DISCOVERED CLOSE TO WHERE JESUS WAS SAID TO HAVE HEALED THE BLIND

A huge 2,800-year-old dam in Jerusalem's City of David was recently discovered by a team of archaeologists. It is situated very next to the site where Jesus is supposed to have healed a blind man.

According to the Gospel of John, the blind man was instructed by the Lord to visit the Pool of Siloam, which was rediscovered in 2004 and is situated inside the Jerusalem Walls National Park, a location with significant biblical significance.

John 9:10–11 describes the event: "So how did you open your eyes?" they inquired. "The man they call Jesus made some mud and smeared it on my eyes," he retorted. He instructed me to wash in Siloam. After I washed, I was able to observe. 

Following a collaborative excavation by the Weizmann Institute of Science and the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA), the most recent discovery was revealed on August 30.

The recently discovered dam was probably constructed in the ninth century BC under the rule of King Joash or King Amaziah. The stone construction is approximately 39 feet tall, 69 feet long, and 26 feet broad, making it the largest ancient dam ever discovered in Israel and the oldest known in Jerusalem, according to researchers.

Scientists were able to date its construction to between 805 and 795 BC because of twigs and branches that were retained in the mortar.

Then why was it there? As it happens, it may have been the solution to a climate problem in ancient Jerusalem.

According to the organisers of the excavations, "the dam was built to gather waters from the Gihon Spring as well as floodwaters running down the major valley of ancient Jerusalem."

The Land of Israel had a period of low rainfall, punctuated by brief but powerful storms that might result in flooding, according to all of the [examined] data. Thus, the development of such extensive water infrastructure was a direct reaction to dry conditions and climate change.