The City of Lūṭ?

While our belief in the stories of the Quran is independent of archaeological findings, it is interesting to read of discoveries that clearly seem to validate our beliefs.

Recently, archaeologists around the Dead Sea have discovered the remains of an ancient city that was destroyed by what they assume was a ‘cosmic airburst,’ meaning a meteorite that surprised the city and demolished it completely. 

The archaeological remains of the city, which has been called Tall el-Hammam, indicate that it was the centre of civilization of the region, with a fairly large and active population. 

The blast, which must have come suddenly upon its people, was so severe that its energy waves are estimated to be over a thousand times more powerful than the nuclear bomb detonated over Hiroshima. 

In fact, there is no known equivalent in recorded history, and the sand of the area itself has melted to quartz in temperatures that could not be less than 2000 degrees Celsius. The city was covered in over four feet of ‘volcanic ash’, and because of this, some of its buildings, utensils and structures have been preserved.

It is estimated that the city was destroyed around 3,600 years ago.

Both the time and location of this event, along with the cataclysmic manner in which it was destroyed, correspond to what is said of the time frame and location of Prophet Lūṭ and his people. 

The researchers of this paper also concluded that while they are not interested in the question of whether the Biblical city existed, it is possible that the legends of Sodom and Gomorra are based on this event and destruction.

For us as Muslims, we believe what the Quran says:

(فَلَمَّا جَآءَ أَمْرُنَا جَعَلْنَا عَالِيَهَا سَافِلَهَا وَأَمْطَرْنَا عَلَيْهَا حِجَارةً مِّنْ سِجِّيْلٍ مَّنْضُودٍ * مُّسَوَّمَةً عِنْد رَبِّكَ وَمَا هِيَ مِنَ الظَّالِمِيْنَ بِبَعِيْدٍ )
(هود: 82-83

When Our command came, We turned the cities upside down and rained down on them clustered stones of baked clay, marked by your Lord (Hud: 82-3)

)وَلَقَدْ صَبَّحَهُمْ بُكْرَةً عَذَابٌ مُّسْتَقِرٌّ )

And indeed, by the early morning, they were overwhelmed by an unrelenting torment. (Qamar: 38)

You can read the research paper here:
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-021-97778-3

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