San Jose State University SJSU ScholarWorks Master's Theses Master's Theses and Graduate Research Summer 2013 Ethnic Continuity and Change at Gezer Philip Webb San Jose State University Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/etd_theses Recommended Citation Webb, Philip, "Ethnic Continuity and Change at Gezer" (2013). Master's Theses. 4370. DOI: https://doi.org/10.31979/etd.vfx8-n6uj https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/etd_theses/4370 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Master's Theses and Graduate Research at SJSU ScholarWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in Master's Theses by an authorized administrator of SJSU ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. ETHNIC CONTINUITY AND CHANGE AT GEZER A Thesis Presented to The Faculty of the Department of History San José State University In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts by Philip A. Webb August 2013 © 2013 Philip A. Webb ALL RIGHTS RESERVED The Designated Thesis Committee Approves the Thesis Titled ETHNIC CONTINUITY AND CHANGE AT GEZER by Philip A. Webb APPROVED FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY SAN JOSÉ STATE UNIVERSITY August 2013 Dr. Jonathan Roth Department of History Dr. Isabelle Pafford Department of Art History and Visual Culture Dr. Gary Arbino Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary ABSTRACT ETHNIC CONTINUITY AND CHANGE AT GEZER by Philip A. Webb This project examines the issue of social identity, particularly ethnicity, in the ancient world. It focuses on one site, Gezer, and how ethnic identities there evolved between the Middle Bronze Age and the end of the Iron Age. Modern anthropological perspectives on ethnicity and methods used by archaeologists for identifying ethnicity archaeologically are examined. In light of these studies, the history of Gezer is inspected. The site is chronologically divided into three periods, the Bronze Age, the Early Iron Age, and the Late Iron Age. Using both historical and archaeological sources, the occupational history of Gezer is outlined, highlighting ethnically salient points. The data from Gezer are compared to wider ethnic developments in the surrounding region, namely the Canaanites as an ethno-cultural entity, the Philistines, and the Israelites. The analysis shows that from the Middle Bronze Age through the end of the Iron Age, Gezer experienced long periods of ethnic continuity as well as shorter phases of ethnic variety. During the Bronze Age, the city was the quintessential Canaanite city- state. It continued to be largely Canaanite in the Early Iron Age, though it was ethnically mixed having a minority of Philistines occupying part of the site. In the Late Iron Age the ethnic balance shifted as the site became gradually more Israelite, being completely Israelite by the end of the Iron Age. This study demonstrates that ethnic identity was an existing form of social identity in antiquity and is capable of being revealed in the historical and archaeological record. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank my professors and readers for their critical readings and helpful insights. I have learned a great deal from my interaction with them and without their constructive comments and encouraging remarks this thesis would be woefully incomplete. Additionally, I would like to express my gratitude for my friends and family who have encouraged me throughout my education, particularly through the process of completing this thesis. Most of all, I would like to think my wonderful wife, Leah, without whose love and support I would be nowhere. v TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction 1 CHAPTER 1. THE SITE OF TELL GEZER 5 2. RACE AND ETHNICITY 19 History of the Study of Race 20 Ethnicity 33 Ethnicity and Archaeology 42 3. THE BRONZE AGE 63 Gezer in the Bronze Age 63 Canaanites in the Bronze age 84 Ethnicity at Gezer in the Bronze Age 106 4. THE EARLY IRON AGE 108 Gezer in the Early Iron Age 108 The Philistines in the Early Iron Age 113 Philistines at Gezer 142 5. THE LATE IRON AGE 151 Gezer in the Late Iron Age 151 The Israelites 161 Ethnicity at Gezer in the Late Iron Age 186 Conclusion 192 Bibliography 197 vi Introduction Scholars have studied the ancient past for centuries. They have investigated numerous topics and issues using a variety of methods for their inquiries. The disciplines of history and archaeology are both excellent tools for the examination of the ancient past, though they use different methods to accomplish their goals. This study of ethnicity at the ancient city of Gezer utilizes both, though it is important to understand the purposes and limits of each discipline. Historians seek to answer questions about the past largely through the use of texts. Using the written words of past societies they attempt to gain insight into those who left the texts. Historians use careful analysis of written sources to answer specific questions about specific issues in specific contexts. Though historians are capable of studying nearly every aspect of past societies, they are particularly equipped to examine matters such as intellectual developments, economies, religious beliefs, and other intangible aspects of society that are expressed most clearly in written sources. Conversely, archaeologists study the material remains of past societies. Through excavations of sites occupied in the past, archaeologists uncover artifacts and implements used in the day-to-day lives of historical peoples. By interpreting the recovered material culture archaeologists work to better understand the societies that left behind those artifacts. Though archaeologists may differ on methods of interpretation of the excavated data, they do concern themselves with material remains. 1 Despite the differences between the disciplines, they make natural allies. Both seek to address questions about past societies, though they go about it in different ways. Historians and archaeologists are capable of inquiring into the same issues. The combination of texts and material remains examined in tandem can provide a fuller picture of past societies and particular issues. One issue both disciplines can address is that of social groups in the ancient world. While history and archaeology have a lot to offer to the study of ancient social groups, such an inquiry is not without difficulties. It is clear both historians and archaeologists recognize that ancient societies formed distinct groups. Ancient texts are filled with references to groups of people, and archaeologists recognize differences in material culture they attribute to different groups. However, historians and archaeologists have struggled with how to define such past groups. Some have described them in the terms used by the ancient societies. In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, scholars most frequently used racial theory to describe ancient and contemporary societies. In the latter half of the twentieth century, more scholars began to look at specific social groups called ethnicities. To study issues of ethnic identity in the modern world, scholars spend time among ethnic groups to answer their questions. Those who study ethnicity in the ancient world do not have such a luxury. The chronological separation puts them at a disadvantage as the topic of their study is long gone. Absent the option of actual interaction, historians and archaeologists use texts and artifacts to examine the phenomenon of ethnicity in the ancient world. Additionally, they must determine the scope of their inquiries. 2 This study of ancient ethnicity has a limited range; that is, it is limited to ethnic developments in a single city. It focuses on a city, the ruins of which are in the modern nation of Israel, named Gezer. This city is a particularly attractive area of inquiry for a number of reasons. The city was occupied nearly continuously for several thousand years, leaving behind a highly stratified site. It was an important site for much of its occupational history, which in part resulted in it being well attested in the written record, making it a suitable site for historical inquiry. The site has hosted a series of archaeological excavations, including one ongoing, which has revealed in published reports a great deal of the city’s occupational record. Due to the sites geographic position it was in the midst of known historical ethnic developments.1 The city is well documented both in the ancient historical record as well as by modern excavators. The available sources, both historical and archaeological, allow researchers numerous avenues of investigation, ethnicity certainly among them. Furthermore, Gezer offers researchers the chance to examine how ethnicity and ethnic identity developed and changed over time. The ethnic history of Gezer is marked by long periods of continuity with comparatively brief periods of intermingling with ethnic newcomers. This study will document this pattern only during the Bronze and Iron Ages, though the site experienced ethnic developments in the following Persian and Hellenistic periods as well. In the Middle Bronze Age an ethno-cultural group identified as the Canaanites occupied the city. Throughout the Bronze Age the Canaanites, who did not compose an ethnic group 1 On a personal note, the site is of particular interest because of the author’s participation in the ongoing excavations. 3 in the exact way modern scholars understand the idea, lived at the city. In the beginning of the Iron Age the city experienced the incursion of a new ethnic element, the Philistines. However, the city remained mostly Canaanite in terms of its ethnic and cultural composition. The Philistines were present at the site but the material remains indicate they never gained an ethnic majority. After a couple centuries, the Philistines withdrew from the city, and it was politically dominated by the fledgling Israelite state. Yet, initially, the city was not occupied by ethnic Israelites. It remained a Canaanite city. Over the course of the late Iron Age, the city became more Israelite than Canaanite.