All in the Family

摘要

As a young archaeologist digging in the City of David, an ancient site just south of walled Jerusalem, Eilat Mazar unearthed huge pottery vessels buried just before Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, destroyed Jerusalem 2500 years ago. The pots were stamped with ancient Hebrew writing—and she could read it. The moment crystallized her sense of belonging to the contested city. "This was my language, not some foreign tongue, and it speaks to who I am today and where I was born," Mazar says.