Don't forget the 'under-visited' archaeological sites in Israel

Dear Editor:

As an avid subscriber to the Biblical Archaeology Review for over 40 years, I really appreciated Heritage’s article about some of the more important archaeological sites to visit in Israel (“The 10 most iconic archeological sites in Israel, July 3, 2020). There are so many it’s really difficult to decide. I, however, do feel that the almost totally unknown site is the Valley of Elah. The what? Where is that? Why is it important? It’s hardly mentioned in the Bible. So tell us why is it important. Easy. Think about the early biblical history. Think about the Philistines and their relationship with the Jews. 

So why is the Valley of Elah so important? Well, remember the story of the young shepherd boy, David, going out single handed to take on the Philistine giant warrior, Goliath? The battle was to be “one on one. Winner take all.” Had not the young shepherd boy won, end of story.

They are now doing extensive excavations of the area trying to bring it the notice it richly deserves. That’s just my opinion. There are many, many more under-visited sites that should also be visited throughout Israel from “Dan to Be’ersheva,” so to speak.

Laurence Morrell

Maitland, Florida