Editor-in-chief: David Ilan Board of Editors: Yehuda Govrin, Yuval Gadot, Yorke Rowan, and Yifat Thareani Editorial Coordinator: Conn Herriott Translation: Conn Herriott Editing: Conn Herriott, David Ilan and Hananel Shapira (Hebrew); Miriam Feinberg-Vamosh (Maresha) Maps and Preparation of All Graphics: Conn Herriott Layout: Anna Hayat Printed by: Printiv © 2015 THE NELSON GLUECK SCHOOL OF BIBLICAL ARCHAEOLOGY, HEBREW UNION COLLEGE 13 King David Street, Jerusalem 94101 ISSN 2227-9008 Cover Illustrations: English cover: Chalcolithic Shaft 18 at Yehud (see p. 22). Hebrew cover: Bronze statue of Heracles from Maresha (see p. 169). CONTENTS Letter from the Editor ................................3 The Pottery from the Byzantine Refuse Pits 146 Eli Cohen-Sasson Map of Reported Sites ................................6 The Human Remains ......................... 150 Excavations at Yehud: Vered Eshed & Esther Deutsch The 2008-2009 Seasons Archaeozoological Findings from the Chal- Yehuda Govrin colithic and Intermediate Bronze Periods at Introduction .................................... 7 Yehud .......................................... 154 Moshe Sade Geographical and Environmental Background .....................................11 Discussion and Conclusions .................. 157 Yehuda Govrin & Nathan Ben-Ari Yehuda Govrin History of Excavation ..........................13 Yehuda Govrin Excavations at Maresha: Subterranean Complex 90 - Final Report THE CHALCOLITHIC REMAINS: Ian Stern, Nahum Sagiv & Bernie Alpert Archaeological Features .......................14 Yehuda Govrin 1. Subterranean Complex 90 at Maresha: an Incomplete Olive Press and Other Features . 161 The Ceramic Assemblage ......................28 Ian Stern, Nahum Sagiv & Bernie Alpert Nathan Ben-Ari & David Ilan 2. Pottery and Small Finds ................... 175 The Ground Stone Assemblage ................84 Ian Stern & Mechael Osband David Ilan, Nathan Ben-Ari & Dov Levitte 3. Amphora Stamps from Chipped Stone Artifacts from Subterranean Complex 90 ................... 204 the Chalcolithic Shafts .........................94 Gerald Finkielsztejn Conn Herriott 4. Oil Lamps from THE INTERMEDIATE BRONZE AGE REMAINS: Subterranean Complex 90 ................... 206 Archaeological Features ..................... 105 Einat Ambar-Armon Yehuda Govrin Artifacts from the Intermediate SUMMARIES OF HEBREW REPORTS: Bronze Age Tombs .......................... 112 A Roman/Byzantine Water Cistern at Mamilla Conn Herriott (Independence Park), Jerusalem ................... 213 Beads from Intermediate Bronze Age Gideon Suleimany & Yonatan Mizrahi Tomb 21 at Yehud: a Preliminary Report ... 121 Rescue Excavation at Hafetz Haim (Salugia) ... 214 Daniella E Bar-Yosef Mayer Gideon Suleimany THE MIDDLE BRONZE AGE REMAINS: Ein Mazruk (Abu Ghosh) ........................ 215 Archaeological Features ..................... 124 Nathan Ben-Ari Yehuda Govrin Rescue Excvation at Nurit (Nuris) ............... 216 Artifacts from the Middle Bronze Achia Kohn-Tavor Age Tombs .................................... 127 Conn Herriott HEBREW REPORTS ................................ 5* THE BYZANTINE – EARLY ISLAMIC PERIOD REMAINS: Archaeological Features ..................... 136 Yehuda Govrin Map of reported sites. Excavations at Yehud The 2008-2009 Seasons Yehuda Govrin INTRODUCTION The 2008 Season the compound’s two northern buildings, eight addi- This site is located on the southwestern fringes of Tel tional archaeological features were found 3-4m below Yehud (NIG 189449-659730; Fig. 1), and over the surface level (Fig. 2). In three locations a salvage years has yielded significant archaeological riches. excavation of 75m² was required by the IAA. This During test excavations conducted by Israel Korenfeld was conducted by Y.G. Contract Archaeology Ltd. and Rachel Bar-Nathan of the Israel Antiquities (Permit B-327/2008), for Aura Israel Ltd. Authority (IAA), a complex of wine presses and The features were located at the base of the parking structures from the Byzantine period were exposed lot’s excavation, within a heavy black clayey layer. (Korenfeld and Bar-Nathan 2014). Further test pits Stratigraphically, a 3-4m-thick sediment layer lies were machine-dug and archaeologists monitored all above earlier archaeological features dating to the building works. During the excavation of a deep pit Chalcolithic period (ca. 4500-3700 BCE) and the for the underground parking lot that was to serve Middle Bronze I-II period (ca. 1900-1700 BCE), Figure 1. The location of the site. EXCAVATIONS AT YEHUD INTRODUCTION Figure 2. Areas C and D (excavated in 2008). Figure 3. Areas A and B (excavated in 2009). 8 9 EXCAVATIONS AT YEHUD and below finds from the Byzantine and Early Islamic archaeological investigation, consisting of system- GEOGRAPHICAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL BACKGROUND periods which lay near the surface. atic toothless-backhoe clearance to locate additional remains. In the northern half of Area A we discov- Yehuda Govrin & Nathan Ben-Ari The 2009 Season ered the disturbed remains of a large refuse pit which Following the rescue excavation carried out in 2008, had cut the top from the entire surface layer, with the Tel Yehud (Tell el-Yehudia) is situated on the north- heavy alluvial soil with clay sediments which charac- Y.G. Contract Archaeology Ltd. was asked by the result that there were no archaeological findings here. eastern side of the Ono valley, known from biblical terizes the riverbeds (Grover 1970: 32). The typical developer (Aura Israel Ltd.) to carry out further exca- Furthermore, the surface of central Area A had been sources as Biq’at Ono (Nehemia 6: 2), in the eastern soil type in the area of Tel Yehud is of the degraded vations (Permit B-337/2009) at the site of the under- severely damaged by earthworks. Thus, in this portion part of the central coastal plain of Israel, ca. 12km brown-red sandy soil type with alluvial clay sedi- ground parking lots for two further towers to the of the area no features or in situ artifacts were found. east of the Mediterranean Sea. Today, due to modern ments (Dan 1970: 64; Rabikovitch 1992). This type south (Towers 10A and 10B [Areas A and B here]). The following staff participated in the excavation: activity most of the ancient mound is barely visible. of soil is common in areas that are characterized by Following a test excavation by heavy machinery, the Conn Herriott (fieldwork, drafting), Esther Deutsch In geographical terms the Ono valley is part of the annual rainfall of 400-600mm (Rabikovitch 1992: IAA had released this area for development, while and Dr. Vered Eshed (osteology), Dr. Moshe Sade western Ayalon basin which stretches over ca. 815km2 136), which fits the annual rainfall for this area – maintaining archaeological supervision. In the course (zooarchaeology), Dr. Oren Akerman (geomor- (Fig. 4). This basin is comprised of five geomorpho- 500-540mm (Rosen and Markowitz 1970: 52). The of digging the underground parking lots, work was phology consulting), Anna Dodin and Avshalom logical units (Dan 1970: Fig. 6/1; Marton 1970: degraded brown-red sandy soils are not well suited for stopped by the IAA inspectors due to the discovery of Karasik (ceramics illustration, partly by computer 11-13): agriculture. But in some cases with proper fertilizing archaeological remains. The parking lot area of Tower simulation at the Hebrew University) and Vladimir they are fit for field crops. In contrast, the alluvial soil 10B – the western of the two planned buildings (Area Naikhin (artifact photography). Researchers from 1) The Ono valley (the flood plain). in the riverbeds of Nahal Yehud, Nahal Ayalon and B here) – had been excavated almost in its entirety various fields took part in finds processing. 2) The western hills (in the northwest and Nahal Beit-Arif is well suited for agriculture. (down to 33m above sea level [ASL]). In this area In Areas A and B we discovered remains dating to southwest) The area of Tel Yehud has a high water table and the topsoil typically consisted of a deep layer of dark the following periods: 3) The eastern hills (in the northeast and east) clay; it is possible that archaeological remains within presumably it was so in the Chalcolithic period as • The Chalcolithic period: deep shafts filled with 4) The Lod valley (southeast of Nahal Ayalon) this layer had been damaged before foundation work well. These high levels allowed the inhabitants to dig “rubbish” and ash was stopped. 5) Gezer (south) wells. In the vicinity of the tel there are two small The first stage of archaeological excavation • Intermediate Bronze Age: a cemetery character- The Ono valley is nearly flat and functioned as watercourses: Nahal Yehud (south and southeast of focused on the locations where inspection had iden- ized by shaft tombs a flood plain of Nahal Ayalon. Its borders are the the tel) and Nahal Ono (west and southwest of the tified potential archaeological remains, designated western and eastern hills to the north, the western tel). Both are tributaries of Nahal Ayalon. In addition, • The Late Roman-Byzantine period: artisan’s by the IAA as requiring rescue excavation (Fig. 3). hills and Lod to the south and southeast (respec- Nahal Beit-Arif flows south of the tel and in close workshop, concentrations of pottery waste mate- Subsequently, once the nature and density of the tively), the Shephelah hills to the east, and the area proximity. This is one of the main drainages of the rial, stone-lined cist graves findings became clear, we initiated a second stage of