An inscription of conquered sites of Canaan at Thutmose's temple at Karnak tells us that Egyptian pharaoh Thutmose III (ruled 1479–1425 BC) burned and destroyed Gezer in the wake of his campaign against rebelled cities of Canaan. In the 14th century, the Tell Amarna letters described the kings of Gezer swearing loyalty to the Egyptian pharaoh. Archaeologists excavated several pottery vessels, a cache of stamps with the emblem of pharaoh Amenhotep III providing strong evidence of the existence of a city at Gezer in the 14th century BCE. The fortification wall, four meters thick, and a palace were constructed at this period.
A few hours walk along Tel Gezer. You can start a day with a picnic in the charming forest of Hamagenim. Then, through the village of Karmay Yosef, we rise to the famous ancient hill Gezer. At this place, the battles of ancient history took place and the Egyptian pharaoh subjugated the disobedient rulers of Canaan. These rulers gathered together and concluded military alliances near one of the most mysterious structures of the ancient East - stone giants from Tel Gezer. Descent into an ancient well of forty-meter depth is the most mysterious part of the walk. We will end the day in the cool water spring of Yarda, where the battle of the Crusaders against Saladin once took place.
Cover photo by: Maximidf - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=62461515
