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‘Atiqot 76 (2013)
ISBN 2948-040X
The Burial Ground at Horbat Za‘aq
(pp. 1–23)
Irit Yezerski
Keywords: Shephelah, cemetery, architecture, burial traditions, ethnic groups
Thirty-two rock-cut burial tombs were documented in the burial ground excavated at Horbat Za‘aq, in the southern Judean Shephelah. The majority of the tombs date to Iron Age IIB–III; one tomb (Tomb 13) dates to MB IIB–C; another (Tomb 48), to the Roman or Byzantine period; and two tombs (Tombs 22 and 23) were reused in the Early Roman period. These tombs probably belonged to families who lived in villages or farms in the vicinity of the burial ground. The Iron Age IIB–III rock-cut tombs at H. Za‘aq were hewn according to local architectural traditions; however, they share certain features with the nearby burial grounds at Tel Halif and Tel ‘Etun in southern Judah.