The Baal who was worshipped was called Baal Zebub, which some scholars connect with Beelzebub, known from 2 Kings 1:2: The prophet Elijah repeatedly condemned Ahaziah for turning to Baal-zebub for assurance: Ekron's destruction is prophesied in Zephaniah 2:4: Jerome wrote that Ekron was to the east of Azotus and Iamnia (consistent with the modern interpretation), however he also mentioned that some equated the city with Straton's Tower at Caesarea Maritima.

The Canaanite city had shrunk in the years before its main public building burned in the 13th century BCE, during the Bronze Age collapse, a period of general devastation associated with the Sea Peoples.

[12] The siege of Ekron in 712 BCE is depicted on one of Sargon II's wall reliefs in his palace at Khorsabad, which names the city.

[13] Sennacherib turned aside to defeat this army, which he did at Eltekeh, and then returned and took the city by storm, put to death the leaders of the revolt and carried their adherents into captivity.

[16][17] The Tel Miqne excavations were conducted for 14 seasons between 1981 and 1996, sponsored by the Albright Institute of Archaeological Research and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, under the direction of Trude Dothan and Seymour Gitin.

The final Iron II occupation in the 7th/6th centuries BCE was represented by a single architectural unit in Field III in the lower city.

It yielded Cypriot and Mycenaean imported pottery and Anatolian Grey burnished ware, attesting to international maritime trade.

The last Canaanite city of Stratum VIII was destroyed in a violent conflagration, dramatically illustrated on the Summit by a severely-burnt storeroom complex that yielded jars containing carbonized grains, lentils, and figs.

In the Strata VI–V Philistine 2 (Bichrome) pottery with red and black decoration on white slip is a major part of the ceramic assemblage.

The material culture of Stratum IV is characterized by Philistine 3 (debased) pottery and the influence of a ceramic tradition of predominantly red-slipped and burnished ware.

In Strata VI–V, a major feature was the mudbrick glacis, a cultic room with an incised scapula similar to those found in the 12th and 11th century BCE shrines at Enkomi and Kition on Cyprus.

The artifacts, many representing a continuation of Aegean traditions, include a rectangular bone plaque painted in blue and incised with the depiction of the rear of a horse, a Mycenaean-type female figurine, a gold spiral hair-ring, a conical stamp seal depicting two prancing gazelles, an iron knife with an ivory handle, two small pebbled hearths, and two goat skulls.

The domestic buildings continued in use in Stratum IV with no substantial change, and special finds included an incised scapula, similar to those found in the upper city.

Also in the lower city, in the elite zone, Stratum VII was represented by a number of installations, including rectangular hearths.

In Stratum VI circular hearths were found in a large public structure, which also produced a round ivory pyxis lid decorated with scenes of animals in battle.

In Stratum V, a megaron-type building contained superimposed pebbled hearths, three rooms with benches and bamot, and a monumental entrance hall with two mushroom-shaped stone pillar bases.

In Stratum IV the plan of the building complex was reused and its cultic function continued, as attested by the finds, including a cache of ivory, faience, and stone objects, among them decorated earplugs and a ring depicting the Egyptian goddess Sekhmet.

[28] Master suggests the answer is to be found in the rediscovery of an old trade route and the entrance of a new player in the olive oil and wine market, the Ionians.

The inscription mentions Ekron, thus confirming the identification of the site, as well as five of its rulers, including Ikausu (Achish), son of Padi, who built the sanctuary.

The ivories include a depiction of a woman, perhaps a royal personage; a knob bearing the cartouche of the 12th century Pharaoh Ramses VIII; a large head, probably from the top of a harp; and a large object with a male figure on the front, the image of a royal female personage on the side, and a cartouche of the 13th century Pharaoh Merneptah on the back.

[32] There is but fragmentary evidence from the Roman, Byzantine and Islamic periods found only in Fields IV Upper and V.[citation needed] 21.