Iron Age Strata Research Articles

Dog Consumption at Tell Zirāʿa: Is It a “Cultural Marker” for the “Sea Peoples”?

It has been argued that the increase in the consumption of dogs in the southern Levant during the Iron Age was due to the advent of the Philistines/“Sea Peoples” into the region. In this study, we test this proposal through the presentation of new information on dog consumption and its depositional context in Bronze and Iron Age strata from the archaeological site of Tell Zirāʿa (Jordan), and we compare the results to other sites in the region. Our study does not support that such behaviour is a signal of ethnic identity.

Strontium and Oxygen Isotope Analyses Reveal Late Cretaceous Shark Teeth in Iron Age Strata in the Southern Levant

Skeletal remains in archaeological strata are often assumed to be of similar ages. Here we show that combined Sr and O isotope analyses can serve as a powerful tool for assessing fish provenance and even for identifying fossil fish teeth in archaeological contexts. For this purpose, we established a reference Sr and O isotope dataset of extant fish teeth from major water bodies in the Southern Levant. Fossil shark teeth were identified within Iron Age cultural layers dating to 8–9th century BCE in the City of David, Jerusalem, although the reason for their presence remains unclear. Their enameloid 87Sr/86Sr and δ18OPO4 values [0.7075 ± 0.0001 (1 SD, n = 7) and 19.6 ± 0.9‰ (1 SD, n = 6), respectively], are both much lower than values typical for modern marine sharks from the Mediterranean Sea [0.7092 and 22.5–24.6‰ (n = 2), respectively]. The sharks’ 87Sr/86Sr are also lower than those of rain- and groundwater as well as the main soil types in central Israel (≥0.7079). This indicates that these fossil sharks incorporated Sr (87Sr/86Sr ≈ 0.7075) from a marine habitat with values typical for Late Cretaceous seawater. This scenario is in line with the low shark enameloid δ18OPO4 values reflecting tooth formation in the warm tropical seawater of the Tethys Ocean. Age estimates using 87Sr/86Sr stratigraphy place these fossil shark teeth at around 80-million-years-old. This was further supported by their taxonomy and the high dentine apatite crystallinity, low organic carbon, high U and Nd contents, characteristics that are typical for fossil specimens, and different from those of archaeological Gilthead seabream (Sparus aurata) teeth from the same cultural layers and another Chalcolithic site (Gilat). Chalcolithic and Iron Age seabream enameloid has seawater-like 87Sr/86Sr of 0.7091 ± 0.0001 (1 SD, n = 6), as expected for modern marine fish. Fossil shark and archaeological Gilthead seabream teeth both preserve original, distinct enameloid 87Sr/86Sr and δ18OPO4 signatures reflecting their different aquatic habitats. Fifty percent of the analysed Gilthead seabream teeth derive from hypersaline seawater, indicating that these seabreams were exported from the hypersaline Bardawil Lagoon in Sinai (Egypt) to the Southern Levant since the Iron Age period and possibly even earlier.

Iron Age Adornment at Tell eṣ-Ṣâfi/Gath

Between 1998 and 2014, Iron Age strata from Areas A, C, D, E, F, and P yielded a rich assemblage of 172 objects of adornment. These objects come from contexts dated to the Late Bronze Age-Iron Age ...

Omride Palatial Architecture as Symbol in Action: Between State Formation, Obliteration, and Heritage

Omride Palatial Architecture as Symbol in Action: Between State Formation, Obliteration, and Heritage

STRATIGRAPHY OF TEL ‘EN GEV, ISRAEL: CORRELATION AMONG THREE ARCHAEOLOGICAL MISSIONS

Archaeological excavations have been conducted at Tel ‘En Gev, Israel, by three archaeological missions: a group of Israeli archaeologists headed by B. Mazar (1961), the Japanese Archaeological Project in the Biblical Land (1990–2004), and Keio University, Japan (2009–2011). Mazar and others detected five Iron Age strata in the ‘lower city’ and four in the ‘upper city’. On the other hand, the Japanese mission found only two strata from the Iron Age and one each for Persian, Hellenistic, and Early Roman periods, while Keio University uncovered three Iron Age strata and one Persian–Hellenistic stratum. Therefore, until date, no coherent timeframe has been established for the site. In this paper, the evidence gathered by the three groups will be examined and compared to reconstruct a coherent picture of the historical development of Tel ‘En Gev.

Physical and mineralogical properties of experimentally heated chaff-tempered mud bricks: Implications for reconstruction of environmental factors influencing the appearance of mud bricks in archaeological conflagration events

Sun-dried mud bricks are used around the world and have been found in the Levant and Mesopotamia since the Neolithic period. Their form and composition lend important information pertaining to social and technological meaning in human cultures. Fired mud bricks are well known in the southern Levant, often identified in Bronze and Iron Age strata and used as a marker for destruction by fire (conflagration events). Only a few studies have attempted to reconstruct conflagration conditions from fired mud bricks because many variables impact the formation of the final fired brick. These include brick composition, heat intensity (i.e., maximum temperature), heat duration and firing atmosphere (i.e., oxidizing vs. reducing). The myriad combinations of these factors may result in different appearance of fired bricks. Infrared spectroscopy is one method that has been exploited quite extensively in relation to fired clay-based materials: studies were conducted on powdered sediment samples for a fixed duration and in oxidizing conditions, producing calibration curves that were then utilized for reconstruction of past maximal heat. Here we report on an experimental study of the thermal behavior of mud bricks under differing composition, heat intensity, heat duration and firing atmosphere. We carried out experiments in a furnace oven using micro-thermocouples which allowed us to simultaneously measure heat across bricks, from edge to core. The resulting mud bricks were analyzed using Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. We identify a previously unknown thermal effect that occurs in bricks tempered with organic material while they are fired; namely a correlation between the amount of organic temper and elevation of temperatures up to 100°C above the oven chamber temperature. We record the color patterns obtained at different temperatures and duration of heating, as well as the colors obtained from heating in different atmospheres. We report that the FTIR spectrum of bricks heated in oxidizing conditions differs from that of bricks heated in reducing conditions at the same temperature. We note that the position of the main clay absorbance band cannot be used alone to infer firing temperature as its shift is not systematic. We show that combining this parameter with the width of the same band in the FTIR spectrum makes it possible to achieve better temperature reconstructions from fired bricks. Lastly, we report a small scale case study in which we tested the applicability of the experimental results to the remains of a mud brick wall unearthed within the largest known destruction event in the ancient city of Megiddo, i.e., Tel Megiddo Stratum VIA. We show that this wall was burnt as one unit, having a reduced core and oxidized outer part, where the core experienced temperatures in the range of 500–600°C and the edge 600–700°C. The detailed analysis of brick compositions carried out in this study further allows us to reconstruct the ancient bricks' preparation recipe. The results of this study bear important implications for future studies of archaeological conflagration events, and the destruction phenomenon in general.

Notes on the Iron IIA Settlement in Jerusalem in Light of Excavations in the Northwest of the City of David

The article deals with the Iron IIA remains unearthed in the Givati Parking Lot in the northwestern side of the City of David. This excavation contributes threefold to the understanding of the Iron IIA in Jerusalem: (1) It provides important information for the reconstruction of the ancient topography along the western side of the City of David ridge; (2) the finds from the earliest Iron Age strata illuminate the typological characteristics of the Iron IIA ceramic assemblage in Jerusalem; (3) the excavation has thus far revealed no evidence of Iron Age fortifications. Unless evidence of Iron Age fortifications materializes, the notion that the City of David ridge was fortified in the Iron IIA can no longer be asserted.

The Iron Age Remains at Tel Nagila

The paper presents the preliminary results of the analysis of the Iron Age finds from Tel Nagila. The excavations, which took place in the early 1960s under the direction of R. Amiran and A. Eitan, revealed three Iron Age strata. Through the lens of these finds, we reflect on Tel Nagila as an Iron Age settlement on the border between Judah and Philistia, on the ethnic and political affiliations of its population, and how these affiliations may have changed over time.

Dating Late Iron Age Ekron (Tel Miqne)

A fresh approach is offered to the tangled arguments that surround the dating of late Iron Age Ekron (Tel Miqne). The only firm historical peg for dating the late Iron strata is provided by the temple inscription of Ikausu, an Ekronite ruler mentioned in Assyrian records in the second quarter of the seventh century BCE. From this evidence, somewhat lower dates than those of the excavators are argued for Strata IC to IA. The lower chronology suggested here should resolve the differences between various scholars regarding the character and historical associations of Ekron's final Iron Age strata. Ramifications for the related debate over the dating of Greek Archaic pottery are considered.

Sediments exposed to high temperatures: reconstructing pyrotechnological processes in Late Bronze and Iron Age Strata at Tel Dor (Israel)

Many of the sediments analysed from Tel Dor (Israel) show structural alterations indicating that they were exposed to high temperatures. This observation is consistent with the abundant evidence for use of pyrotechnology from the earliest exposed Middle Bronze Age strata through the Roman period. Such structurally altered sediments may well represent one of the more widespread and durable records of pyrotechnology, and as such could be invaluable for reconstructing past human activities. The specific aims of this research are therefore to develop the means for identifying local sediments that were altered by different pyrotechnological activities and to elucidate the varying circumstances whereby sediments were exposed to high temperatures in a Late Bronze and Iron Age 1 section. We first characterize natural sediments sampled on and in the proximity of the tell and monitor their transformations due to exposure to high temperatures in an oven and in open fires, focusing in particular on the transformations of the clay mineral components of mud-brick materials. The analytical techniques used include micromorphology, Fourier transform infrared spectrometry (FTIR), X-ray powder diffractometry (XRD) and X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectrometry. Using the temperature “calibrated” data, we confirm that large volumes of sediments at Tel Dor were exposed to high temperatures. In Area G, we identify three fundamentally different ways that heat-affected sediments were produced and accumulated: (1) In the Late Bronze Age (Phases 11–12) the sediments were heated to temperatures between 800 and 900 °C and were then deposited in the area under investigation. A plausible scenario is that these sediments were exposed to heat from ovens or kilns; (2) During the early Iron Age (Phase 10) the heat-affected sediments (heated above 1000 °C) formed in close association with casting pits for the working of copper-containing (bronze) objects. (3) During Phase 9 of the Iron Age, heat-affected sediments were produced in situ at this location due to a major conflagration. The temperatures reached around 1000 °C. This study shows that analysis of high temperature exposed sediments may be an invaluable means of reconstructing fire-associated activities, even when the actual installations have not been identified during the excavation or were not preserved.

Wrong and Right; High and Low 14C Dates from Tel Rehov and Iron Age Chronology

Bruins, van der Plicht and Mazar (2003a) recently presented a new set of 14C measurements from Tel Rehov and interpret them as supporting at least part of the conventional chronology system for the Iron Age strata in the Levant. The present article takes issue with the provenance of the samples and with Bruins, van der Plicht and Mazar's methodology, historical arguments and interpretation of the measurements using the calibration curve. The article shows that the new readings from Tel Rehov far from support the conventional chronology. First, there is an alternative interpretation for the readings from Tel Rehov V, which falls in the very late 10th century BCE. Second, Tel Rehov IV is the contemporary of Megiddo VA (VA–IVB) and hence the latter, with its ashlar palaces, must be dated to the first half of the 9th century BCE. This means that the new Tel Rehov measurements support the most important component of the Low Chronology system.

Radiocarbon Dates from Iron Age Strata at Tel Beth Shean and Tel Rehov

We discuss the significance of 32 radiocarbon dates from the archaeological sites of Tel Beth Shean and Tel Rehov in northern Israel. All dates are from Iron Age I and II archaeological contexts (12th–8th centuries BCE). Most of the dates were done on short-lived samples (seeds and olive pits), while some are on charred timber. The samples are organized in several homogeneous clusters according to their context. This series is one of the largest groups of 14C dates from the Iron Age in the Levant. The paper discusses the correlation between the 14C dates and the traditional archaeological dates of the same context. Results from two laboratories and two calibration curves are compared, showing some significant differences in one case. We conclude with an evaluation of the relevance of 14C dating for the current debate about the chronology of the Iron Age in Israel, and in historical periods in general.

The Rise of Jerusalem and Judah: the Missing Link

The paper attempts to identify early stages of state formation in Judah, before the great leap forward in population growth, building activities and literacy in the late-eighth and seventh centuries BCE. It surveys the Late Bronze, Iron I and early Iron II finds in Jerusalem in particular and the ]udahite countryside in general, and then turns to ninth-century finds in the Shephelah and the Beer-sheba Valley. The finds are evaluated according to the ‘Low Chronology’ system for the Iron Age strata in the Levant. The article proposes that early steps toward statehood in Judah can be detected in the ninth century BCE, and that Israel under the Omride dynasty played an important role in the territorio-political and cultural processes that took place at that time in the southern kingdom of Judah.

Sarepta I, the Late Bronze and Early Iron Age Strata of Area II, Y: The University Museum of the University of Pennsylvania Excavations at Sarafand, Lebanon

Sarepta I, the Late Bronze and Early Iron Age Strata of Area II, Y: The University Museum of the University of Pennsylvania Excavations at Sarafand, Lebanon

Trial Excavation of Two Iron Age Strata at Tel 'Eton

Trial Excavation of Two Iron Age Strata at Tel 'Eton

Trial Excavation of Two Iron Age Strata at Tel 'Eton

Trial Excavation of Two Iron Age Strata at Tel 'Eton