Hezekiah's Tunnel

The Tunnel

A 1750-foot (530m) tunnel carved during the reign of Hezekiah to bring water from one side of the city to the other, Hezekiah's Tunnel together with the 6th c. tunnel of Euphalios in Greece are considered the greatest works of water engineering technology in the pre-Classical period.  Had it followed a straight line, the length would have been 1070 ft (335m) or 40% shorter.

The Construction

2 Kings 20:20 "As for the other events of Hezekiah’s reign, all his achievements and how he made the pool and the tunnel by which he brought water into the city..."

2 Chron. 32:30 "It was Hezekiah who blocked the upper outlet of the Gihon spring and channeled the water down to the west side of the City of David."

Recent Excavations

Discovered in modern times by Edward Robinson (1838), cleared by Montague Parker's team (1909-11), work continues on the Tunnel and related passageways under the direction of Ronny Reich (1995-).  Recent work has uncovered some of the archaeological tools and equipment abandoned by the Parker expedition.

The Meeting Point

Why is the tunnel S-shaped?

R. A. S. Macalister said the tunnel was a "pathetically helpless piece of engineering." 

Henry Sulley in 1929 first suggested that Hezekiah’s tunnel followed a natural crack in the rock.

Dan Gill argues that the two crews of diggers followed a natural karstic dissolution channel.

The Location of the Siloam Inscription

“[...when] (the tunnel) was driven through.  And this was the way in which it was cut through:  While [...] (were) still [...] axe(s), each man toward his fellow, and while there were still three cubits to be cut through, [there was heard] the voice of a man calling to his fellows, for there was an overlap in the rock on the right [and on the left].  And when the tunnel was driven through, the quarrymen hewed (the rock), each man toward his fellow, axe against axe; and the water flowed from the spring toward the reservoir for 1200 cubits, and the height of the rock above the head(s) of the quarrymen was 100 cubits.”

Related Websites

Related BiblePlaces.com pages: Pool of Siloam and City of David.

Siloam Inscription & Hezekiah's Tunnel (The New Jerusalem Mosaic, Hebrew University)  Describes the circumstances for the carving of the tunnel in biblical times and the finding of the inscription in modern times.  Copy of this page at Jewish Virtual Library: (Siloam Inscription, Hezekiah's Tunnel.)

Hezekiah's Tunnel (Daily Bible Study)  General information about the biblical  history  connected to the site with links to related topics.

Hezekiah's Tunnel (Furman University)  Includes a large photograph and brief description of the tunnel.

The Gihon Spring (Furman University)  Includes a large photograph and brief description of the spring.

Jerusalem's Waterworks: An Ancient Marvel (Israel MFA)  Describes several components of ancient Jerusalem's water systems, presenting Hezekiah's tunnel in context.

Siloam Inscription (Personal Page, K.C. Hanson)  Gives a technical description of this ancient document and a translation of its text.

Gihon Spring (Engines of Our Ingenuity, Univ. of Houston)  Presents one explanation for the irregular design of the tunnel.

Hezekiah's Tunnel Revisited (Jerusalem Post)  A personal encounter with the tunnel, discussing the biblical and historical context of this ancient marvel.

Hezekiah's Tunnel and the Gihon Spring (Congregation Ohav Sholom)  Touring Hezekiah's tunnel proves to be an emotional experience for this author.  As he describes, the identification of many sites is based on tradition, but the authenticity of this one is "undeniable."

Hezekiah's Tunnel (Personal Page)  Another personal description of the trip through the tunnel.  Includes a helpful summary chart (at the top of the page) and diagram.

The Testimony of an Ancient Tunnel (Southwest School of Bible Studies)  A defense for the detailed historical accuracy of the Scriptures spotlighting Hezekiah's Tunnel.

Was the Siloam Tunnel Built by Hezekiah? Scanned images from the article by Rogerson and Davies in Biblical Archaeologist.  But see Hendel's response.  Or see the main index of issues for 3 years of the magazine (1996-98).