"Near the Temple Mount inside the walls, notable remains of an Umayyad palace have been found.
The excavations since 1978 in the Mount Ophel and City of David area have revealed evidence of settlement dating to the 4th millennium BCE as well as of Canaanite and early Hebrew settlements, the latter with a wealth of seals, epigraphic material, and everyday utensils."
"Ancient origins of the city
The earliest traces of human settlement in the city area, found on a hill to the southeast, are from the late Chalcolithic Period (Copper Age) and Early Bronze Age (c. 3000 BCE).
Excavations have revealed that a settlement existed on a site south of the Temple Mount, and a massive town wall was found just above the Gihon Spring, which determined the location of the ancient settlement.
The name, known in its earliest form as Urusalim, is probably of western Semitic origin and apparently means "Foundation of Shalem (God)."
The city and its earliest rulers, the Egyptians, are mentioned in the Egyptian Execration Texts (c. 1900"1800 BCE) and again in the 14th-century
Tell el-Amarna correspondence, which contains a message from the city's ruler, Abdi-Kheba (Abdu-eba), requiring his sovereign's help against the invading Hapiru (Habiru, Apiru).
A biblical narrative mentions the meeting of the Canaanite Melchizedek, said to be king of Salem (Jerusalem), with the Hebrew patriarch Abraham.
A later episode in the biblical text mentions another king, Adonizedek, who headed an Amorite coalition and was vanquished by Joshua."
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