1.8-second catastrophic destruction event at Tell el-Hammam. Mud brick walls with 3-meter thickness were sheared off at the same level across the entire site Pottery vessels were found strewn in pieces across 22 meters of floor space Fragments of the same vessel were recovered at different heights within the destruction matrix
Archaeologists at Tall el-Hammam in Jordan discovered a Bronze Age city where even thick mud brick walls were sheared off uniformly at the same height. Everything—debris, pottery, wood—was blasted in the same southwest to northeast direction, as if the entire city was impacted by a powerful force. A controversial 2021 study (now retracted by Nature) suggested a cosmic airburst destroyed the settlement around 1650 BCE, though the research has faced significant scientific criticism.
Key Facts
- Mud brick walls with 3-meter thickness were sheared off at the same level across the entire site
- Pottery vessels were found strewn in pieces across 22 meters of floor space
- Fragments of the same vessel were recovered at different heights within the destruction matrix
- The event lasted approximately 1.8 seconds
- All destruction moved from southwest to northeast direction
- A 400-kilogram saddle quern was rolled a quarter turn off its base to the northeast
Related site: Tell el-Hammam — view location, images, and history on the Ancient Nerds map.
Source: Melted Brick, Airborne Pottery, Bones Burned - The Destruction Layer at Tal el-Hammam by The Cosmic Summit