A tiny clay fragment with an Assyrian inscription—possibly tied to a tax revolt during the reign of King Hezekiah—has been uncovered just steps from the Temple Mount, the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) announced Wednesday.

The one-inch pottery sherd, inscribed in Akkadian, dates to the First Temple period (8th–7th century BCE) and is the first of its kind ever found in Jerusalem. Archaeologists say it provides rare material evidence of imperial communication between Assyria and the Kingdom of Judah, strengthening the historical record of Jerusalem’s status as a capital city during the biblical period.

Discovered during a wet-sifting operation at the Emek Tzurim Archaeological Experience, the shard was found in a debris layer near the Western Wall—originally swept to the edge of Jerusalem’s Second Temple-era central drainage canal.

“For me personally, the thought that after 2,700 years, I am the first person to actually touch this pottery with my hands is a very exciting thought,” said Moriah Cohen, who found the artifact. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime find.”

An Israeli Antiquities Authority (IAA) archaeologist holds a cuneiform inscription on a small pottery sherd, believed to reference a delay in payment from the Kingdom of Judah to the Assyrian Empire, discovered during an Israel Antiquities Authority archaeological excavation near the Western Wall in Jerusalem’s Old City, October 22, 2025. Photo by Yonatan Sindel/Flash90

According to IAA excavation director Ayala Zilberstein, the shard likely belonged to an official message transmitted between Assyrian envoys and Judean authorities. The inscription references a due date—the first of the Hebrew month of Av—using a shared Mesopotamian-Judean calendar, a system known to have been in use during Assyrian dominance in the region.

The implication? The message may have been part of a tax collection order or notification of delinquency. Researchers are now exploring whether this could reflect a deliberate refusal to pay tribute—a scenario that would align with the biblical account of King Hezekiah’s revolt against King Sennacherib of Assyria, as recorded in 2 Kings 18.

“The inscription provides direct evidence of official correspondence between the Assyrian Empire and the Kingdom of Judah,” Zilberstein said. “It strengthens our understanding of the depth of Assyrian presence in Jerusalem and their involvement in Judean affairs.”

Israeli Heritage Minister Rabbi Amichai Eliyahu welcomed the discovery as a powerful affirmation of Jerusalem’s ancient and enduring Jewish identity. “This rare discovery illustrates, once again, our deep roots in Jerusalem, which is the spiritual and national center of the Jewish people,” he said. “It is impressive evidence of the city’s status as the capital of the Kingdom of Judah some 2,700 years ago—just as described in the Bible.”

At the time, Assyria was the dominant empire in the Near East, and Judah’s kings navigated a volatile mix of tribute, resistance, and survival. The fragment reveals just how deep Assyria’s bureaucratic reach extended—into the heart of Jerusalem itself.

Analysis: This discovery is not just archaeological trivia. It is textured, material confirmation of the biblical record—not from a religious document, but from the imperial claywork of Israel’s ancient oppressors. Far from undermining the biblical narrative, finds like this embed it deeper in the soil of Jerusalem.

At a time when Israel’s legitimacy in its own capital is still questioned on the world stage, this clay shard speaks louder than politics: Jerusalem was a Jewish capital. The Bible got it right.

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