Current Issue
Past Issues
Editoral Policy
About Us
Guide to Contributors
Call for Papers
Submission
‘Atiqot 57 (2007)
ISBN 2948-040X
The Excavations at Khirbat el-Ni‘ana
(Hebrew, pp. 29*–49*; English summary, pp. 166–167)
Ofer Sion
Keywords: Shephelah, Late Roman period, Byzantine period, burial
Two areas were excavated along the eastern fringes of Khirbat el-Ni‘ana, revealing built tombs with vaulted roofs, refuse from glass and pottery workshops and temporary hearths. The built tombs are characteristic of the southern coastal plain during the fourth century CE. The findings point to the area’s function as both a cemetery and an industrial zone—both functions were traditionally situated on the outskirts of settlements for reasons of health and environmental considerations. The settlement might have been populated by Samaritans. After a gap in time, the site was resettled during the Mamluk and Ottoman periods.