‘Atiqot - Publications of the Israel Antiquities Authority

‘Atiqot 81 (2015) ISBN 2948-040X

An Iron Age Site at Khirbat Umm el-Baqr (Nahal Adorayim) (with contributions by Emil Aladjem) (Hebrew, pp. 69–105; English summary, pp. 122*–123*)
Pirhiya Nahshoni and Svetlana Talis
Keywords: Philistine pottery, bull figurine, stone vessels, groundstones
Two areas (A, B) were excavated at Khirbat Umm el-Baqr, north of Nahal Adorayim. In Area A, two small, natural caves were found; no finds or evidence of use were observed. In Area B, Early Bronze Age finds were unearthed in an irregularly shaped pit, and remains of at least two buildings were exposed, dating from the end of Iron I to the beginning of Iron II (end of the eleventh–beginning of the tenth centuries BCE). The finds from the Early Bronze Age comprise potsherds and a Canaanite flint blade, and those of the Iron Age consist of pottery, a zoomorphic figurine, flints and stone vessels and artifacts. Despite the poor preservation of the buildings, it is possible to conclude that the site was abandoned in haste, as attested by complete vessels found on the floors. This area was not resettled, and may have moved to the higher tell.