Ashqelon
[key], city, SW Israel, on the Mediterranean Sea. It is a beach resort in an area of citrus
groves and cotton plantations. Ashqelon's industries process agricultural products and
manufacture cement, plastics, electronic equipment, and watches. Nearby is the site of ancient
Ashqelon, or Ashkelon, whose history dates back to the 3d millenium b.c. It was a
trade center and port and a seat of worship of the goddess Astarte. Ancient Ashkelon was conquered by the Philistines in the late 12th cent. b.c. and completely rebuilt. Ashkelon
flourished under the Greeks and Romans; Herod, believed to have been born there,
greatly enlarged the city. It was taken by the Arabs in a.d. 638, conquered by the
Crusaders in 1153 and occupied by Richard I in 1191, and completely
destroyed by Muslims in 1270. An Israeli settlement was established there in 1948. In 1955 the
modern city of Ashqelon was founded when Afridar, a town established by South African Jews in
1952, and Migdal, a former Arab town, were merged. A national park in Ashqelon includes Greek
and Roman ruins and the remains of ancient synagogues. A Roman tomb (3d cent.) decorated with
frescoes, the ruins of a Byzantine church, and a wall built by Crusaders are also in the
city.
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