Evidence of a brutal slaughter by Hasmonean king Alexander Yannai against his enemies, in which men, women and children were decapitated, has been unearthed at an excavation at the Russian Compound in central Jerusalem.
Archaeologists from the Israel Antiquities Authority discovered numerous decapitated skeletons while excavating an ancient cistern that held artifacts dating from Hellenistic through Roman times. The bones appear to have been thrown into the cistern, then covered with dirt and rocks.
"During the excavation, we discovered monstrous findings," said Dr. Yossi Nagar, an anthropologist with the IAA.
"We brought up more than 20 cervical vertebrae that had been cut off using a sword. Bodies and body parts of babies and parts of adults – men and women – who were apparently victims of the brutal slaughter had been thrown into the pit," Nagar said.
The dig, under the direction of IAA archaeologist Kfir Arbib, has also uncovered fragments of pottery dating from the time of Alexander Yannai, who was famed for his ruthlessness toward his opponents among the Jews of Jerusalem.
According to Arbib and his colleague Tehillah Lieberman, "We can attribute the brutality to King Alexander Yannai, who historical accounts say captured and killed many Jews who opposed him, including their children and wives, whom he executed in front of them.
"The bones discovered in the pit indeed bear innumerable marks of swords that struck not only the neck, but also the bottom jaw and the base of the skull, demonstrating that their heads had been cut off. What's more, the bones of fetuses discovered in the excavation reveal that those slaughtered included pregnant women."
Alexander Yannai (103-76 BCE) was a king and high priest of the Hasmonean line, the third son of Yochanan Horkanos I. The 27 years of Yannai's reign were noted for a series of wars designed to expand the Hasmonean kingdom.
The findings were represented at the annual New Studies in the Archaeology of Jerusalem and its Region conference, held at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
