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ARTHUR W. SUTTON, ESQ., J. P., F.L.S., ON 



was the seat of a Christian Bishop as early as the fourth century. 

 The Crusaders, who were powerfully established at Beit-Jibrin, 

 which they called Gibelin, beautified one cave by a handsome 

 Eomanesque doorway. 



To sum up the subject of the " Riddle of the Caves " in the 

 district round Beit-Jibrin, there is an innumerable number of 

 artificial caves. The date of a few of these is later than the 

 Jewish period ; a few others are demonstrably earlier than the 

 end of the Jewish monarchy, and there is Scriptural evidence 

 that similar caves existed at an earUer date still (Judges vi, 2) : 

 " Because of Midian the Children of Israel made them the dens 

 which are in the mountains and the caves and the strongholds." 

 This shows that such artificial caves were made in the times 

 of the Judges for refuges. Certain chambers were prepared as 

 cisterns, store-chambers, etc. There is no means of dating such 

 chambers. Other chambers were used for religious rites, filters, 

 prisons, quarries, traps for wild beasts, etc. 



We next reach Gezer. The site of this famous ancient city 

 had been forgotten in modern times until about 1870, when 

 Prof. Clermont-Ganneau commenced his research. Biblical 

 records of the city commence with the time of Joshua. Its 

 king, Horam, helped Lachish against Joshua's attack, and he 

 and his army were utterly annihilated (Josh, x, 33). Gezer was 

 allotted to Ephraim who, however, failed to drive the Canaanites 

 out (Judges i, 29). Other historical sources carry us back to 

 the time of Thothmes III, who captured it about 1500 B.C., 

 though the excavations prove the history of Gezer to go back 

 a further 1500 years, of which there is no written history. 



Canaanites, Israelites, Arabs, all have successively inhabited 

 the mound through the centuries. We read in 1 Chron. xx, 4, 

 of Phihstine giants whom David's men slew at Gezer. The 

 Canaanites Hngered on in Gezer till the reign of Solomon. When 

 Solomon celebrated his marriage with the daughter of the King 

 of Egypt, the Pharaoh went up and took Gezer and burnt it 

 with fire and slew the Canaanites that dwelt in the city, and 

 gave it for a portion unto his daughter, Solomon's wife " 

 (1 Kings ix, 16). 



Two tables which have lately been found give evidence of 

 an Assyrian occupation of Gezer. Gezer had varying fortunes 

 during the wars of the Jews and the Syrians. About 160 B.C. 

 it was captured by the Syrians and afterwards recaptured by 

 Simon Maccabaeus, the great High Priest, who fortified it, and 



