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‘Atiqot 55 (2007)
ISBN 2948-040X
Stone Quarries at Horbat Gilan, in the Menashe Hills
(Hebrew, pp. 37–44; English summary, pp. 55–56)
Amir Gorzalczany
Keywords: technology, rock-cutting, detachment channels, courtyard quarries
Some 800 m northeast of Barqai Junction, along the route of the Cross-Israel Highway, an extensive quarry was exposed. The quarry, dated to the Roman and Byzantine periods based on the quarrying technique and ceramic finds, was used to quarry hard nari limestone, which was suitable for construction. The quarrying activity created steps or terraces. The detachment method included the separation of the stone’s sides from the bedrock and then its extraction by pulling the stone sideways. A rough calculation of the material extracted from the various quarrying locations is also attempted.