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‘Atiqot 60 (2008)
EISSN 2948-040X
Front Matter
Atiqot 60
Keywords: Front Matter
Table of contents in Hebrew and in English
A Chalcolithic Burial near Horbat Govit in Lower Galilee
(with a contribution by Hamoudi Khalaily)
(pp. 1–18)
Edwin C.M. van den Brink and Catherine Commenge
Keywords: burial, caves, burial gifts, funerary customs
Excavations within a rock shelter opposite Horbat Govit in the Lower Galilee uncovered two strata dating to the Chalcolithic period. The pottery finds of the earlier Stratum 2 were of domestic types. In Stratum 1, the rock shelter was reused for the burial of one individual, surrounded by funerary gifts typical of the Late Chalcolithic period, including V-shaped bowls, basins and holemouth jars. These finding are important with regard to the scarcity of Late Chalcolithic dwelling and burial sites in the Lower Galilee.
The Early Bronze Age Site of Ashqelon, Afridar—Area M
(with contributions by Hamoudi Khalaily, Moshe Sade and Elisabetta Boaretto)
(pp. 19–51)
Amir Golani
Keywords: domestic architecture, flint industry, copper processing
Two strata dating to Early Bronze Age IA were discerned in Area M in the Afridar neighborhood at Ashqelon. Both EB IA strata revealed settlement remains, featuring typical curvilinear architecture; however, the earlier buildings were built of stone, while the later ones were made of mudbricks. The Stratum I habitation level contained several copper-melting installations. The pottery assemblage is characteristic of EB IA in southwestern Canaan, including V-shaped bowls and holemouth jars. Also found were ground-stone artifacts and flint tools, dominated by the Canaanean Industry.
A Bronze Age Site at Nahal Rimmonim in the Jeareel Valley
(pp. 53–74)
Karen Covello-Paran
Keywords: rural settlement, burial, agriculture
In salvage excavations carried out at the site of Nahal Rimmonin, in the southwestern part of the Jezreel Valley, three superimposed strata were revealed: two dating from the Intermediate Bronze Age and one, to Middle Bronze Age IIA. The pottery repertoire of the Intermediate Bronze Age is typical of contemporary sites in the Jezreel Valley, dominated by bowls, holemouths, cooking pots and storage jars; flint tools were found as well. The MB IIA stratum revealed a domestic structure, beneath the floors of which were interments of infants. The pottery assemblage from this period represents two archaeological contexts: accumulations and burials. This site is informative for the study of rural settlement patterns during these periods in the Jezreel Valley.
The Flint Assemblage from Nahal Rimmonim
(pp. 75–77)
Hamoudi Khalaily
Keywords: Canaanean industry
Excavations at the site of Nahal Rimmonim yielded 146 flint artifacts, twenty percent of which are tools. The tools are of typical types, spanning a long period of time, dating from the Early Bronze Age, the Intermediate Bronze Age and the Middle Bronze Age.
Rock-Cut Tombs from the Intermediate Bronze and Iron Ages at Kafr Kama, Lower Galilee
(pp. 79–91)
Karen Covello-Paran
Keywords: burial, rock-cut caves, burial goods
A three-meter-wide trench, cut in the southern outskirts of Kafr Kama, exposed part of an ancient cemetery that was in use during the Intermediate Bronze and Iron Ages. Ten rock-hewn shaft tombs were documented; most of them were only partially excavated. The finds within the tombs primarily included pottery vessels. Tomb X yielded a bronze dagger, probably dating to the Intermediate Bronze Age. Evidence for the settlements, whose inhabitants buried their dead in the excavated tombs, is still missing.
Middle Bronze Age II and Late Bronze Age II Burials at Tel Afeq (Tell Qurdana) in the ‘Akko Plain
(pp. 93–114)
Dina Shalem
Keywords: cemetery, burial goods, faience vessel, offering bowl
Situated in the south of the ‘Akko plain, Tel Afeq (Tell Qurdana) revealed a number of burial caves, cut into chalk-like bedrock during Middle Bronze Age IIA and reused during Late Bronze Age II. The pottery assemblage mainly consists of well-known vessel types, dating to the Early, Middle and Late Bronze Ages. The pottery finds dating to MB IIA are characteristic of the region, while the LB II assemblage presents both local types and imports, such as Cypriot ‘milk bowls’ and
bilbils
, and a few Mycenaean vessels. The caves were most probably part of a cemetery of a settlement on the tell, yet to be excavated.
Four Hebrew Seals, One Depicting and Assyrian-Like Archer, from the Western Wall Plaza Excavations, Jerusalem
(pp. 115–129)
Tallay Ornan, Shlomit Weksler-Bdolah, Zvi Greenhut, Benjamin Sass and Yuval Goren
Keywords: epigraphy, glyptic, Assyrian art, Davidic dynasty
Four Hebrew seals were unearthed in an Iron Age II building excavated opposite the Western Wall, Jerusalem. All four seals are inscribed in Hebrew of the eighth–seventh centuries BCE, but each was executed by a different ‘hand’. One of the seals (No. 4) exhibits the image of a standing archer, inspired by Assyrian imagery, depicted here for the first time on a seal with a Hebrew inscription. The seals, and the pottery found in association with them, indicate that the building belonged to people of an upper class, possibly holding a high rank in the kingdom of Judah.
A Burial Complex from the Roman Period in Ancient Haifa
(with contributions by Donald T. Ariel and Yossi Nagar)
(Hebrew, pp. 1*–11*; English summary, pp. 197–198)
Shalom Yanklevitz
Keywords: Carmel, burial, burial goods, wooden coffins
Within the boundaries of Ancient Haifa (Haifa el-‘Atiqa) a burial cave was exposed, hewn in the
kurkar
rock. Two burial chambers and the remains of two others survived, entered through a courtyard. Chamber 1 was well-preserved, containing eight burial troughs hewn in two
arcosolia
and an additional trough near the entrance. The cave was dated based on the finds within Chamber 1, including coins, to the fourth–sixth centuries CE; it served for burial up to the seventh century CE. The cave was probably part of the Jewish cemetery of Haifa during the Roman and Byzantine periods.
A Late Third–Fourth-Century CE Burial Cave on Remez Street, Qiryat Ata
(with a contribution by Gabriela Bijovsky)
(pp. 131–164)
Fanny Vitto
Keywords: Galilee, cemetery, burial customs, population
Excavations in a rock-cut burial cave at Qiryat Ata yielded numerous finds, including pottery coffins, lamps, pottery and glass vessels, jewelry and coins, dating to the Late Roman period. This type of cave, containing six loculi (
kokhim
) and an
arcosolium
, does not appear in the Galilee before the late second–third centuries CE. The discovery of jewelry items and coins in the cave probably point to the Pagan identity of the interred. The coins discovered in the cave seem to indicate the pagan belief of paying the ferryman Charon an
obol
for crossing to the netherworld. Several other Late Roman-period caves have been found in the area of present-day Qiryat Ata; however, the Late Roman settlement, to which the burial caves belong to, is yet to be found.
A Byzantine Church at Qiryat Ata
(with a contribution by Ariel Berman)
(pp. 165–176)
Fanny Vitto
Keywords: Galilee, Christianity, basilica, art
Part of a Byzantine-period church was revealed during an excavation conducted at Qiryat Ata. The church was basilical in plan, oriented roughly eastward. The nave was paved with a polychrome mosaic, exhibiting a geometric pattern that was dated on stylistic grounds to the second half of the sixth century CE. Small limestone fragments decorated with geometric motifs were found on the mosaic floor, probably belonging to a chancel screen. The finds included pottery and glass vessels of Late Byzantine date. The church probably belongs to a rather prosperous settlement that existed within the present limits of Qiryat Ata.
The Tel Tanninim Aqueduct (Channel E) from the Byzantine Period
(Hebrew, pp. 13*–24*; English summary, pp. 199–200)
Yosef Porath
Keywords: Caesarea, water supply, technology
A section of an aqueduct (Channel E), which led water to the Byzantine settlement and monastery(?) at Tel Tanninim, was found some seventy meters west of the High Aqueduct to Caesarea. New data concerning the water level in the Lower Aqueduct to Caesarea dismissed the previous hypothesis that the Lower Aqueduct was the water source of Channel E. The results of several surveys and excavations pertaining to the question of the water source of Channel E, point to the High Aqueduct to Caesarea as its water source. Excavations clearly showed that Channel E was built in two stages: first a ceramic pipe was laid on the sand dunes, and later, a gravity channel was built, founded atop the earlier pipe, which was then covered with a cement envelope. Both stages of Channel E were dated based on chronological considerations to the Byzantine period.
A Coastal Rural Occupation of the Medieval Period at ‘En Gev
(pp. 177–191)
Hervé Barbé
Keywords: Sea of Galilee, village, construction techniques
In a salvage excavation conducted south of Kibbutz ‘En Gev, two building phases were observed. The early building remains were constructed prior to the Medieval period, while the later construction was dated to the Medieval period, comprising two complexes. The pottery finds date from the Roman, Byzantine, Early Islamic, Medieval and Ottoman periods. The exposed building complexes are part of a rural occupation on the eastern coast of the Sea of Galilee during the Medieval period, which existed from the twelfth through the fourteenth centuries CE.
A Coin Wrapped in Cloth from Elqosh
(pp. 193–194)
Fanny Vitto
Keywords: Galilee, numismatics, textile, Charon, obol
A coin wrapped in cloth was found in a Roman-period burial cave at Elqosh. The coin was published in the previous volume of
‘Atiqot
(No. 59), however, its photograph was not published. The coin is presented here once again with its photograph and a short discussion.
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