Idea #559 – Exploring the lost antique cities of Sodome & Gomorrhe in Jordan
For a lot of specialists, five cities of the Bronze Age in the South of Dead Sea would be associated with the five “Cities of the Plain” of the Bible. Edh-Dhra Bab would be most probably Sodom, while Numeira would have been known under the name of Gomorrah.
Numeira, that seems to be Gomorrah, is situated in the southeast extremity of Dead Sea. The site was excavated between 1977-1983. The site would have only been inhabited during the period of the Ancient Bronze Age III, and several indications would indicate that it was edh-Dhra Bab’s colony. Indeed, no grave was found around by Numeira, and shards of ceramic indicate that the inhabitants of Numeira buried their deaths in the Bab’s outside cemetery edh-Dhra. The city suffered from two events of destructions, corresponding to narratives biblical describing the plunder of cities by kings of the North (Gen 14) then the final destruction by God (Gen 19).
Bab to edh-Dhr, antique Sodom, is situated in the south-oriental extremity of the Dead Sea, on the Southern bank of the wadi Kerak. The city of Bab edh-Dhra was occupied during the Ancient Bronze Age I-III; that is in the IIIth millennium BC. The occupation of the city reaches its peak at the Ancient Bronze Age III, spreading out then on 10 acres and counting a population of at least 1000 inhabitants. A wall of 7 meter stones dating this period was updated in the extremities is and the West of the city. One of the most remarkable aspects of the city of Bab’s ehd-Dhra stays in the number of graves. While the population rose seemingly in only to thousand individuals, the archaeologists estimate about 20 000 the number of graves on the site. These family graves would have served to bury near half a million people and more than 3 million objects in pottery.
Some Pictures
Where is it ?
Numeira, Jourdain Valley, Jordan