JERUSALEM — Israeli archeologists believe they have discovered the ruins of a palace belonging to the biblical King David, but other Israeli scholars dispute the claim.
Archeologists from Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Israel's Antiquities Authority said their find, a large fortified complex west of Jerusalem at a site called Khirbet Qeiyafa, is the first palace of the biblical king to be discovered.
''Khirbet Qeiyafa is the best example exposed to date of a fortified city from the time of King David,'' said Yossi Garfinkel, a Hebrew University archeologist, suggesting that David himself would have used the site. Garfinkel led the seven-year dig with Saar Ganor of Israel's Antiquities Authority.
Garfinkel said his team found cultic objects typically used by Judeans, the subjects of King David, and saw no trace of pig remains. Pork is forbidden under Jewish dietary laws. Clues like these, he said, were ''unequivocal evidence'' that David and his descendants had ruled at the site.
Critics said the site could have belonged to other kingdoms of the area. The consensus among most scholars is that no definitive physical proof of the existence of King David has been found.
Archeologist Israel Finkelstein of Tel Aviv University agreed that Khirbet Qeiyafa is an ''elaborate'' and ''well-fortified'' 10th-century BC site, but said it could have been built by Philistines, Canaanites, or other peoples in the area.
He said there was no way to verify who built the site without finding a monument detailing the accomplishments of the king who built it. Last week, for instance, archeologists in Israel found pieces of a sphinx bearing the name of the Egyptian pharaoh who reigned when the statue was carved.