DIGS

Excavate Israel's Largest Canaanite City

Tel Hazor is the largest and most important Canaanite site in Israel, encompassing an area of over 200 acres. In the second millennium BCE, the city was comprised of an upper city (the acropolis) and a lower city. Ancient records show that the city was considered the southernmost Syrian urban center during the Bronze Age. The name of the city appears in kings lists of Thutmose III, Amenhotep II, and Seti I as well as in Papyrus Anastasi I, among others. It is the only city mentioned in the Mari archive of the Middle Bronze Age and was considered a “great power” in the Amarna archive of the Late Bronze Age. It is also mentioned several times in the Hebrew Bible.

The University of Haifa’s excavations at Hazor focus on the lower city of the site, which was settled only during the second millennium BCE. This area was previously excavated by Yigael Yadin in the 1950s, who uncovered temples, domestic units, workshops, and cultic spaces, as well as a large fortification system. The goals of our expedition are to learn more about the people that lived at the site, rather than city’s rulers. The lower city of Hazor is crucial to understanding when, how and why the city was destroyed in a large conflagration at the end of the Late Bronze Age.

Details

Geographic Location

Upper Galillee, Northern Israel

Dates of the Dig

June 18 - July 28, 2023

Minimum Stay

3 Weeks

Application Due

Monday, May 1, 2023

Academic Credit/Cost per Credit/Institution

Up to 6 academic credits are offered by the University of Haifa. $300/3 credits or $600/6 credits

Accommodations

Accommodation will be in Kibbutz Ayelet Ha’Shahar, immediately to the east of the site. Rooms are designed to house two or three people. All the rooms equipped with air-conditioner, ensuite bathroom, TV and kitchenette. The kibbutz also has a swimming pool, soccer field, a large supermarket, and a bar. Free Wi-Fi is available throughout the property.

Cost

Directors

Contact

Dr. Shlomit Bechar

[email protected] // [email protected]

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