🏛️ Tell es-Sultan (Ancient Jericho)
Palestine
About This Sacred Site
Tell es-Sultan is the archaeological mound of ancient Jericho, widely regarded as the oldest continuously inhabited city and the oldest known walled settlement on Earth, with evidence of habitation stretching back over 10,000 years. The site holds immense significance in the Bible as the first city conquered by the Israelites under Joshua, whose walls famously 'came tumbling down.' Excavations have revealed a stone tower dating to approximately 8,000 BCE — one of the oldest monumental structures ever built by humans. The tell rises 21 meters above the surrounding plain, composed of layer upon layer of human settlement. In 2023, Tell es-Sultan was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the first Palestinian World Heritage Site nominated under that name.
Key Facts
- •One of the oldest continuously inhabited cities on Earth — over 10,000 years old
- •Contains a stone tower from c. 8,000 BCE, one of the oldest known monumental structures
- •Biblically famous as the city whose walls fell to Joshua's trumpets
- •UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2023
- •The tell (settlement mound) rises 21 meters, built up by millennia of habitation
Location
Coordinates: 31.8714, 35.4442
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