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Israel Finkelstein

The ruins of Tel Jezreel hold a commanding view of the Jezreel Valley to its north. The rectangular imprint of an impressive 11-acre enclosure can still be seen in the light-colored dirt and stones at the top of the mound. During six seasons of excavation, archaeologists David Ussishkin and John Woodhead uncovered clear evidence of a ninth-century B.C.E. Israelite fortress protected by a casemate wall and a moat, as well as a royal palace. It was here that the notorious Queen Jezebel met the grisly death foretold by the prophet Elijah.

Relatively little of the site has been excavated, but even this is enough to get a clear outline of what Jezreel looked like in the ninth century B.C.E.