Yavne and the industrial production of Gaza and Ashqelon wines

Abstract

Recent excavations at Yavne show the scale of the wine industry at the site, indicating the central place of its wineries in the viticulture, processing and trade of wines from Ashqelon and Gaza during the Byzantine period. The paper analyses the textual and archaeological evidence for the production and popularity of these wines and gives emphasis to the discovery of a huge wine estate that includes multiple winepresses, warehouses and pottery kilns. These finds are contrasted with similar sites along the southern coastal plain of Late Antique Palestine. The specific wineries and pottery kilns associated with this industry are presented, showing unifying and differentiating characteristics, and the connection between the wineries and adjacent kilns in which ubiquitous Gazan amphorae were manufactured. These traits point towards the creation of a regional terroir (wine growing region) and a branded product from the 5th to 7th centuries CE. Finally, an attempt is made to address the production capacity of this wine industry, as expressed through evaluation of the winepresses at Yavne.