Tel Beth-Shemesh Research Articles

Between cities and villages: the livestock economy in historical Palestine

This study aims at establishing a historically based model of animal husbandry in urban and rural settlements, in the Southern Levant. This type of model is required in the field of zooarchaeology, to better analyze and study ancient faunal remains. It also applies a non-traditional method to study and differentiate between urban and rural economies. For this aim, we used British Mandate tax files and village statistics. These are the best available historical documents for this period, that recorded herds management statistics in all settlements of Palestine. We selected only settlements inhabited by the indigenous population and divided the data into four environmental regions. We analyzed the livestock abundance and herd demography in each region. Each urban center was considered independently, while the rural villages were classified into three groups, based on the most common livestock (cattle, sheep, or goats). Results show economic variations between urban and rural settlements as well as regional trends, such as in pastoralism and agricultural management. In addition, meat industries were common in most urban centers, being the primary difference from rural economies. We applied this model to two large zooarchaeological case studies, dating from the Early Islamic to the Ottoman period; Mount Zion, located in the urban city of Jerusalem, and Tel Beth Shemesh (East), whose size and nature were not historically recorded. We found that the economic variations reflected in the model were also present in the faunal assemblages.

Archaeo-Material Study of the Cuneiform Tablet from Tel Beth-Shemesh

The Fifth Haverford excavation season at Tel Beth-Shemesh (Ain Shams) in 1933 revealed a fractured tablet bearing a cuneiform inscription dating to the Late Bronze Age. Considered to be the earliest alphabetic cuneiform text uncovered in the Canaanite arena outside of Ugarit, this tablet quickly became the focus of many studies. Later readings suggested that this was the earliest example of a South Semitic Alphabetical sequence. Through petrographic material analysis, the present study examines the possible location of production of the tablet and discusses the implications with regard to the object’s function and cultural context.

Age and sex determination of fingerprints on ceramic objects from the Late Bronze Age Palace at Tel Beth-Shemesh, Israel

Who made figurines for ritual feasting in the Late Bronze Age (LBA) palace at Tel Beth-Shemesh? This article attempts to answer this question by determining the age and sex of fingerprints on five zoomorphic figurines and a lamp from a unique room in the LBA IB–IIA palace that contains an assemblage normally associated with feasting. The age and sex determinations of 59 preserved epidermal print impressions, based upon the analysis of ridge breadth and ridge density, are reported. Accounting for 2–6% clay shrinkage, the results show that at each respective rate, 37–46% of the prints were made by adults, 46–53% by adults or adolescents, 9–10% by children, while 51–60% were male and 49–40% were female. The discussion explores these results in relation to understanding manufacturing practices, the distinction between toys and ritual objects, and the visibility and role of children in LBA I–II society.

Frozen in time: Caprine pen from an early Islamic earthquake complex in Tel Beth Shemesh

Skeletons of ten articulated goats and additional numerous caprine remains were found in an architectural complex that was destroyed by an earthquake, dating to the 8th century CE in Tel Beth Shemesh, Israel. As this assemblage represents a unique event, of a living herd “frozen in time”, we studied it in comparison to the general “consumed assemblage” of caprinae from the rest of the site. Reconstructing the herds' demographics, by examining age and sex profiles, enabled us to gain insights into the economic, cultural, and religious habits of the local human population. Based on this analysis, we suggest that the herd was managed for meat, possibly for holiday feasts.

Stamped Jar Handles from Tel Beth Shemesh (East): A Refined Lens for the Exploration of Site History during the Iron Age II, Persian and Hellenistic Periods

Previous articleNext article No AccessStamped Jar Handles from Tel Beth Shemesh (East): A Refined Lens for the Exploration of Site History during the Iron Age II, Persian and Hellenistic PeriodsBoaz Gross, Alexandra Wrathall, Ido Koch, and Oded LipschitsBoaz GrossTel Aviv University; Israeli Institute of Archaeology Search for more articles by this author , Alexandra WrathallTel Aviv University Search for more articles by this author , Ido KochTel Aviv University Search for more articles by this author , and Oded LipschitsTel Aviv University Search for more articles by this author PDFPDF PLUS Add to favoritesDownload CitationTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints Share onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail SectionsMoreDetailsFiguresReferencesCited by Volume 26, Number 1-22022 A journal of ASOR Article DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1086/MAR202226107 © 2022 American Society of Overseas Research. All rights reserved.PDF download Crossref reports no articles citing this article.

Tel Beth-Shemesh: A Border Community in Judah. Renewed Excavations 1990–2000: The Iron Age. By Shlomo Bunimovitz and Zvi Lederman. 2 Vols. Tel Aviv University, Sonia and Marco Nadler Institute of Archaeology, Monograph Series 34. Winona Lake, IN: Eisenbrauns, 2016. Pp. xiii + 774. $189.50 (cloth).

Previous articleNext article No AccessBook ReviewsTel Beth-Shemesh: A Border Community in Judah. Renewed Excavations 1990–2000: The Iron Age. By Shlomo Bunimovitz and Zvi Lederman. 2 Vols. Tel Aviv University, Sonia and Marco Nadler Institute of Archaeology, Monograph Series 34. Winona Lake, IN: Eisenbrauns, 2016. Pp. xiii + 774. $189.50 (cloth).Michael G. HaselMichael G. HaselSouthern Adventist University Search for more articles by this author PDFPDF PLUSFull Text Add to favoritesDownload CitationTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints Share onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail SectionsMoreDetailsFiguresReferencesCited by Journal of Near Eastern Studies Volume 80, Number 1April 2021 Article DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1086/713471 Views: 105Total views on this site © 2021 by The University of Chicago. All rights reserved. For permission to reuse a book review in this section, please contact [email protected]PDF download Crossref reports no articles citing this article.

A Note on Olive Oil Production in Iron Age Philistia: Pressing the consensus

ABSTRACT In this paper we discuss two aspects of olive production in Philistia and the Shephelah during the Iron Age. Previous studies suggested that olive oil production became important in this region only in the 8th century bce centred at Tel Miqne-Ekron, and that the Kingdom of Judah was not involved in the production of olive oil in this region. Recent finds, at Tel Beth Shemesh and at Tell es-Safi/Gath, indicate that this narrative is in need of change. On the one hand, finds from Tell es-Safi/Gath show that production of olive oil was a central aspect in the agricultural production in this region already during the Iron I and Iron IIA. On the other hand, recent finds at Tel Beth Shemesh show that in the 7th century, the Kingdom of Judah was involved in the production of olive oil in the eastern Shephelah.

Iron oxide concretions as raw material for iron IIA iron metallurgy in the southern Levant: New evidence from Tel Beth-Shemesh, Israel

Recent discovery and analysis of a series of iron production and manufacture sites and installations in the southern Levant opened the door for a variety of important studies concerning iron metallurgy in the region. However, the provenance of raw materials used to produce iron artifacts in the majority of these sites still eludes us. Based on new analytical data the present study suggests that the source of iron worked in the 9th century BCE iron smithy excavated at Tel Beth-Shemesh is local and comprises iron oxide concretions that are abundant at a few locations in the close vicinity of the site, and could have been easily collected for processing. This suggestion further emphasizes the localized and idiosyncratic character of the Iron Age sociotechnic systems of iron metallurgy which conspicuously differed from the complex international system of copper and tin trade that characterized the bronze industry of the 2nd millennium BCE in the region.

Foreign Food Plants as Prestigious Gifts: The Archaeobotany of the Amarna Age Palace at Tel Beth-Shemesh, Israel

In contrast with the relatively rich documentation from the el-Amarna archive related to the main city-states of the southern Levant in the Amarna Age (Late Bronze Age IIA; 14th century b.c.e.), ar...

The lmlk and ‘Private’ Stamp Impressions from Tel Beth-Shemesh: An Added Dimension to the Late 8th and Early 7th Century BCE History of the Site

A large number of lmlk (57) and ‘private’ (18) Judahite stamp impressions have been unearthed at Tel Beth-Shemesh. All but one are of the early types dated to the late 8th century BCE. The site has not yielded any lmlk stamp impressions of the late types dated to the early 7th century BCE, concentric-circle incision types from the middle of the 7th century or rosette stamp impressions from the late 7th and early 6th century BCE. This information helps in the reconstruction of the history of this significant lowland center during the period of ‘Pax-Assyriaca’ in the southern Levant.

Tel Beth-Shemesh: Iron IIA Judahite Pottery Typology and Finger Impressed Jar Handles

The article presents two pottery assemblages exposed in 2017 at Tel Beth-Shemesh, in the Level 3 Iron IIA Judahite administrative centre that replaced the Iron I Canaanite villages of Levels 7–4. The assemblages contribute to the study of the typological-chronological development of Iron IIA pottery in Judah. Both date to the mid-/late Iron IIA, i.e., the first half/mid-9th century BCE. Two storage jars in the assemblages bear finger impressions. Contrary to recent suggestions that these impressions testify to early Iron IIA Judahite or Israelite centralised administration, we understand them as a Bronze Age phenomenon affiliated with the Canaanite population of the Shephelah and the northern valleys that reached its apogee during the late Iron I/early Iron IIA.

Metalworking at Megiddo during the Late Bronze and Iron Ages

Metalworking at Megiddo during the Late Bronze and Iron Ages

Archaeometallurgical investigation of thirteenth–twelfth centuries BCE bronze objects from Tel Beth-Shemesh, Israel

Recent studies in the southern Levant have clarified that bronze – the commonly used metal during the Middle and Late Bronze Ages – continued to be produced throughout the entire Iron Age I. In order to gain more information concerning the metallurgical industry in southern Canaan during the Late Bronze–Iron Age transition, we performed an archaeometallurgical study of three well-preserved bronze objects – a 13th century BCE axe and 12th century BCE hoe and handle – discovered in the renewed excavations at Tel Beth-Shemesh, Israel. Analyzing the composition, microstructure and microhardness of the objects, the study aims at reconstructing their manufacturing processes. The chemical analysis revealed that the three objects were made of bronze, with up to 6.2wt% Sn and up to 4.0wt% Pb. Giving their properties and shape, the objects were first cast, most likely in an open mould and then brought to the desired final size and shape probably through cold-forging and annealing cycles. The results of the present research contribute to the accumulating knowledge concerning the Canaanite metallurgical industry during the Late Bronze II–Iron Age I transition.

KNOSSIAN GIFTS? TWO LATE MINOAN IIIA1 CUPS FROM TEL BETH-SHEMESH, ISRAEL

Two Late Minoan IIIA1 cups were recently found in the excavations at Tel Beth-Shemesh, Israel. They were part of a larger assemblage of local Late Bronze IIA (first half of the fourteenth centurybc) drinking and eating vessels sealed under a destruction layer in one room of a large edifice, presumably a ‘palace’. A commemorative scarab bearing the name of Amenhotep III and related to the first Jubilee (Sedfestival) in his thirtieth regnal year was found alongside the cups, providing further chronological evidence. This article examines the Late Minoan IIIA1 cups from Beth-Shemesh within their Aegean context and emphasises their close affinity with comparable cups from the palace of Knossos, catalogued and republished here. The Tel Beth-Shemesh cups are the second occurrence – after Sellopoulo Tomb 4 – of Knossian Late Minoan IIIA1 pottery found together with Amenhotep III's scarab. This new evidence strengthens the likelihood of some chronological overlap between Late Minoan IIIA1 and the reign of this Pharaoh. The article also considers the biography of the two Minoan cups, as social agents within the intricate network of the Late Bronze Age palatial gift exchange in the eastern Mediterranean. While it is possible that the cups came to Beth-Shemesh directly from Knossos, another viable option is that they arrived as a gift from the Egyptian court. The two rare Late Minoan IIIA1 Knossian cups could have reached Egypt on the occasion of Amenhotep III's much-discussed official embassy to the Aegean – including Knossos – and then been sent as royal gifts to the ruler of Beth-Shemesh.

BETH-SHEMESH AND SELLOPOULO: TWO COMMEMORATIVE SCARABS OF AMENHOTEP III AND THEIR CONTRIBUTION TO AEGEAN CHRONOLOGY

A medium-size Amenhotep III scarab recently discovered in the excavations at Tel Beth-Shemesh, Israel, together with two decorated Late Minoan IIIA1 cups enables a fresh look at the synchronism between Late Minoan IIIA1 and Amenhotep III. The scarab is identified as commemorative, produced on the occasion of Amenhotep III's first Jubilee orSedfestival. In light of this interpretation a new examination of the renowned and debated Amenhotep III scarab from Sellopoulo Tomb 4 is presented. It is proposed here to identify this scarab also as commemorative as it includes, in addition to the pharaoh's prenomen, an epithet which relates it too to Amenhotep III's firstSedfestival.Both scarabs, from Beth-Shemesh and Sellopoulo, are shown to have been produced between Amenhotep III's Regnal Years 28/25 and 34 respectively – most probably around Regnal Year 28 – and presumably reached their destination about that time. Further analysis led to the conclusion that the envisioned Egyptian embassy to the Aegean, which may have been the source for the ‘Aegean List’ of Kom el-Hetan, took place also during Amenhotep III's Regnal Year 28.The two culturally different and geographically remote contexts in which the Beth-Shemesh and Sellopoulo scarabs were found – a destruction layer in Canaan and a tomb in Crete – tell the same story: Late Minoan IIIA1 was in vogue at least until the last decade of Amenhotep III's reign in the mid-fourteenth centurybc. This conclusion has important implications for the political and cultural history of Knossos and may anchor the sequence of events of the Final Palatial period in a more solid chronological framework.

SOLVING A CENTURY-OLD PUZZLE: NEW DISCOVERIES AT THE MIDDLE BRONZE GATE OF TEL BETH-SHEMESH

At Ain Shems (Beth-Shemesh) in 1911–1912, Duncan Mackenzie exposed a massive city wall and its ‘South Gate’. Mackenzie published only a schematic plan of the gate, which he dated back to the ‘Canaanite period’, and covered it at the end of his work. The gate comprises one of the finest examples of Middle Bronze city gates known from the Land of Israel, yet its asymmetrical plan and final date of use remained a puzzle for almost a century. Combining archaeological clues on the ground with a study of Mackenzie's unpublished documents in the PEF archive, the authors' renewed excavations at Tel Beth-Shemesh, located the hidden ‘South Gate’ and exposed it anew. The new excavation revealed unknown details about the gate's plan and determined Late Bronze IIA as the terminus ad quem for its function as a gate. A reassessment of the ‘South Gate’ architecture, roofing, and system of closure provides new insights concerning its daily functioning, and raises doubts about the conventional uniform reconstruction of known MB gates. The role of Beth-Shemesh as a fortified MBIIB-C city in the northern Shephelah is discussed vis-à-vis its neighbouring sites: Tel Batash, Tel Miqne, and Gezer.

An Archaic Bacl Inscription from Tel Beth-Shemesh

Two adjoining fragments of a storage jar bearing an archaic alphabetic inscription were found during the renewed excavations at Tel Beth-Shemesh. Analysis indicates that, though found in separate contexts, the two sherds derived from a common source of predominately late Bronze ii and early iron i materials. A date of 1150–1100 BCE for the provenance of the inscription is most likely. The inscription consists of six or seven alphabetic signs incised on the jar before firing. Though only the word or name element bcl is unequivocally recognizable, the original inscription seems to have included a statement of ownership and an indication of the contents of the vessel. A paleographical analysis of the letter signs shows the writing to be characteristic of the mid-12th century BCE or slightly earlier and a date of ca. 1150 BCE, in accordance with its archaeological context, is entirely plausible. The use of the divine name Bacl may hint at the cultural background of the iron Age i population of Beth-Shemesh.

Canaanite Resistance: The Philistines and Beth-Shemesh—A Case Study from Iron Age I

In two excavation cycles conducted at Tel Beth-Shemesh in the early 20th century, a scholarly myth about Philistine domination at the site during Iron Age I was born. Renewed excavations at Beth-Sh...

The Archaeology of Border Communities: Renewed Excavations at Tel Beth-Shemesh, Part 1: The Iron Age

The Archaeology of Border Communities: Renewed Excavations at Tel Beth-Shemesh, Part 1: The Iron Age

Slag inclusions in iron objects and the quest for provenance: an experiment and a case study

Slag inclusions are found within most archaeological bloomery iron artefacts and are remainders of slag created during the smelting and smithing processes. Although they are widely believed to provide data with the potential for provenancing iron artefacts, previous slag inclusion studies have mostly proven inconclusive. The main aim of the work reported here is to analyse experimental smelting and smithing assemblages (including ore, furnace lining, fuel and slag), to compare these to slag inclusions in the resulting bloom and worked objects, and then explore the relationships between ore, slag and slag inclusions. This study has revealed that the composition of slag inclusions most closely relates to the smelting slag produced, whereas provenance to a specific ore would be difficult due to the chemical variability derived from furnace lining, fuel and any fluxes used. Some compounds in the slag inclusions are particularly affected during smithing of the artefact, i.e. those present in the sand flux and fuel used. However, trends are observed in the K 2O/MgO, MnO/SiO 2, Al 2O 3/SiO 2, Al 2O 3/MgO, Al 2O 3/K 2O and Al 2O 3/CaO ratios that allow comparison between slag inclusions and smelting slag in these experiments, and may therefore be used during other provenancing attempts. The knowledge gained from the experimental assemblages was subsequently applied to an archaeological case study, examining objects from the 900 Cal BC smithing site of Tel Beth-Shemesh, Israel and the 930 Cal BC smelting site of Tell Hammeh, Jordan. The analyses suggest that none of the artefacts examined derived from the Hammeh smelting system.