![]() The so-called story of the Taking of Joppa glorifies its conquest by Pharaoh Thutmose III, whose general, Djehuty, hid Egyptian soldiers in sacks carried by pack animals and sent them camouflaged as tribute into the Canaanite city, where the soldiers emerged and conquered it. Jaffa is mentioned in an Ancient Egyptian letter from 1440 BCE. ![]() The city as such was established at the latest around 1800 BCE. The tell of Jaffa, created through the accumulation of debris and landfill over the centuries, made the hill even higher. Market at Jaffa, by Gustav Bauernfeind, 1877Īncient Jaffa was built on a 40 metres (130 ft) high ridge, with a broad view of the coastline, giving it a strategic importance in military history. The medieval Arab geographer al-Muqaddasi referred to it as Yaffa. Pliny the Elder associated the name with Iopa, daughter of Aeolus, god of the wind. ![]() An outcropping of rocks near the harbor is reputed to have been the place where Andromeda was rescued by Perseus. The Hellenist tradition links the name to Iopeia, or Cassiopeia, mother of Andromeda. Mythology says that it is named for Yafet (Japheth), one of the sons of Noah, the one who built it after the Flood. The town was mentioned in Egyptian sources and the Amarna letters as Yapu. Today, Jaffa is one of Israel's mixed cities, with approximately 37% of the city being Arab. Jaffa is known for its association with the biblical stories of Jonah, Solomon and Saint Peter as well as the mythological story of Andromeda and Perseus, and later for its oranges.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |