Ancient Places

Archaeologists working at Tel Azekah, an ancient site located halfway between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, have made a heart-wrenching and unprecedented discovery. Deep within a repurposed water cistern, researchers uncovered the jumbled remains of up to 89 individuals, almost all of whom were infants and young children. Dating back 2,500 years to the early Persian period, this mass grave offers a profound glimpse into ancient burial practices, infant mortality, and how early societies understood the concept of personhood. The haunting find, excavated by the Lautenschläger Azekah Expedition between 2012 and 2014, has finally been detailed in a comprehensive study published in the journal Palestine Exploration Quarterly. The discovery sheds light on an enduring archaeological mystery regarding the absence of young