97 the exact date is not known. It is not clear if the settlement then was continuous. Finds from this period include pottery, rectangular houses, and the first burial sites carved into the rock. Several other villages in the surrounding hills were established at the same time. Apparently Jerusalem was destroyed and rebuilt in the first half of the middle Bronze Age.
Nothing is known about the conquerors except for a few graves from the period.
These documents illustrate one of the ways in which Egypt tried to keep its vassals loyal. The names of cities and their rulers were inscribed on clay bowls or figurines of slaves with their hands tied behind their backs. If a vassal revolted, the Egyptian magicians would break the image of the rebel in the hope that this would break his spirit. The names of two rulers of Jerusalem, Shas'an and Y'qar 'am, date from the 20th century. Some see this as evidence that several tribes, each with its own leader, integrated within the city.