Overview

Jericho is often referred to as the oldest continuously inhabited city in the world. The area in and around the modern city of Jericho is the home to several important archaeological sites, and none more significant than Tell es-Sultan, the site of "biblical" Jericho. Located in the broad Jordan valley plain, just north of the Dead Sea, the rich alluvial soil, temperate climate, and the abundant water from 'Ein es-Sultan, made Jericho an ideal spot for habitation from the earliest periods of human settlement.

The earliest settlement at Tell es-Sultan, though probably only seasonal, was during the Natufian period. The first permanent settlement was early in the Neolithic period (PPNA), and the site remained inhabited into Late Bronze period (approximately 6000 years). The inhabitants of Jericho left behind a mound, averaging 17 meters above the plain, of many strata of human remains.

Tell es-Sultan was subject to three large scale excavations. E. Sellin and C. Watzinger excavated the site from 1907 to 1909, and John Garstang excavated from 1930 to 1936. Both of these excavations, however, suffered from the poor to unrefined methodologies that characterized their time. Thus, when Kathleen Kenyon excavated Jericho from 1952 to 1958 with improved methods, her results are on a much firmer scientific foundation and have largely been affirmed by more recent analyses. Recently, parts of the Tell have been excavated by an Italian team in cooperation with the Palestinian Antiquities Authority.

Many significant structures and artifacts were uncovered during the excavations and tell the story of the earliest human cultures. Unfortunately, very little from the excavations is visible today. In Trench I, the mudbrick Early Bronze wall is still visible. A round tower of the Neolithic settlement can be seen at the bottom of Trench II. In Trench III, one can see Early Bronze and Middle Bronze structures, some of which have been excavated more recently.

The archaeological strata uncovered at the site, as illustrated in the site plan, date to the following periods:

	Middle Bronze Period
	Early Bronze Period
	Neolithic Period