A study of ramparts in Dan during the Bronze and Iron age

Abstract

The emergence of ramparts in the Early Bronze Age in ancient Palestine has been debated, whether they were built to counter siege warfare or not. Many wars from the Late Bronze Age into the Iron Age are against walled cities, where bas reliefs of the ancient Egyptians and Assyrians bear witness to the methods employed to break into the fortifications. The research focuses on the role of the Dan ramparts, as a first line of defence, prevention of erosion, protector of the water source and a socio-political structure of hegemony and emulation through its complementary fortifications. The combination of archaeology, anthropology, geography and military strategy explores the following questions: When, by whom, with what and how were the Dan ramparts constructed? What was the main role of the ramparts? What strategies were used to defend and penetrate the ramparts? How effective was the enemy in breaching the ramparts and were the gates the only vulnerable point of entry? A multidisciplinary approach aids in the investigation of the findings in and around the Dan ramparts identifying whether the attacking force sieged the city through conflict, destruction, conflagration, negotiation, capitulation, or annexation. These sieges are tested through theories adopted from war treatises and strategies originating in the East in determining if, at all, the ramparts were penetrated by looking at the evidence at Dan through a different lens.