Tel Cabri

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Aerial view of the remains of the palace (2013)
A Shefa: the source within the urban area

Tel Kabri refers to the remains of an ancient city in present-day Israel , which experienced its heyday especially in the Middle Bronze Age (around 1750 to 1500 BC). Fortifications and a palace date from this period. It is one of the largest palaces of the Middle Bronze Age in Israel. The ruin hill is about 34 hectares. The ancient name of the city is not known for sure, but it was known as Rehov in the Early Iron Age (from around 1200 BC). In Roman times, the town of Kabrita was built east of the ruins of the Bronze Age city.

Tel Kabri is about 5 km from the sea. The port belonging to the city has not yet been identified. The city probably gained its special importance through two springs that repeatedly attracted settlers. One of these springs lies within the walled city area of ​​the Middle Bronze Age, the other a little east of the city wall.

history

There is evidence that the site of the later city dates back to the time of the Yarmukian culture around 6000 BC. Was settled. A city emerged here in the Early Bronze Age, which was destroyed at the end of the period. The place was shortly afterwards, from the Middle Bronze Age I (MBI) around 2000 BC. BC, repopulated again. A few graves and some remains of residential buildings under the later palace date from this period. These residential structures were leveled at some point over time and what appears to be a grand palace was built.

palace

Little is known of the early palace. The area of ​​the palace has only been partially excavated so that it is not yet possible to get a complete picture of its appearance and development. A distinction can be made between different construction phases, which testify to how the palace was repeatedly expanded, expanded and renovated. It seems to have had its greatest expansion and splendor especially in the Middle Bronze Age II (from 2000 to 1500 BC). Various rooms have now been decorated with Minoan frescoes. Above all, the painting of floors can be proven. The painting of room 611 was relatively well preserved and shows a checkerboard pattern of approximately 40 cm squares separated by red lines. Plant motifs can still be seen in various places. Overall, however, the painting seems to imitate a floor made of ashlar. Such paintings are well known from the Minoan world. The walls were now partly covered with hewn stones. In 2013 the storage rooms of the palace were partially excavated. Numerous ceramics were still found in them.

City wall and fortress

In 1975, excavations in the very north of the city hill uncovered parts of the city fortifications. It was an approximately 35 meter wide wall, some of which is still 5 meters high. This wall was flanked on the inside by a 4 meter wide wall. The wall had stone foundations and was built above from mud brick. An outer wall was about 5.5 meters wide and consisted of two stone formwork. The inside between these bowls was filled with earth, rubble and stones.

In the southwest of the city there was a fortress in the Iron Age, which stood on the highest point of the city. Different construction phases can be distinguished. Only the northwest corner of the fortress has been excavated. It may once have taken up the whole hill and was then about 90 by 60 meters. The fortress could have been around 730 BC. Have been erected. At that time the region was conquered by the Assyrians. She may around 600 BC When the Babylonians invaded this area.

Residential buildings

So far, parts of the residential city have only been recorded in two places in the city. Various residential buildings were excavated in the middle of the city (Area B). The structures of the layers, which date back to the early Bronze Age (IA and IB), are oval and made of stone. In the early Bronze Age II these buildings were replaced by rectangular ones. Another part of the city with residential and commercial buildings was exposed near the city wall in the north of the city (Area C). There was probably a building (MB IIA) here as early as the Middle Bronze Age, but little of the earliest remains have been preserved. A little later a large building was erected here with various rooms grouped around a courtyard. This house was remodeled and a stove was built in the courtyard. The building was in operation for about 200 years and dates to the MB IIA period.

Burials

Burials have been found throughout the city. These are often brick chambers in which multiple burials were found. Ceramic vessels and jewelry were found as grave goods, the latter also including numerous Egyptian scarabs. In addition, various children's burials were found in vessels that were deposited under the floors of the houses.

Digs

Tel Kabri was identified as an archaeological site in the 1950s. In the following years there were individual small excavations, which were often rescue excavations. The site has also been the target of large-scale excavations twice. Investigations took place here from 1986 to 1993 under the direction of Wolf-Dietrich Niemeier and Aaron Kempinski. In 2005 excavation resumed, this time under the direction of Eric H. Cline and Assaf Yasur-Landau.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Yasur-Landau, Cline, Goshen: in Egypt and Levante XXIV (2014), pp. 356–357
  2. ↑ B. Niemeier, W.-D. Niemeier: The Frescoes in the Middle Bronze Age Palace , in: Kempinski, A., 2002, Tel Kabri. The 1986-1993 Excavations , pp. 254-285
  3. ↑ B. Niemeier, W.-D. Niemeier: The Frescoes in the Middle Bronze Age Palace , in: Kempinski, A., 2002, Tel Kabri. The 1986-1993 Excavations , p. 259
  4. ^ Yasur-Landau, Cline, Goshen: in Egypt and Levante XXIV (2014), p. 364
  5. ^ Aharon Kempinski: Tel Kabri. The 1986-1993 Excavations. Institute of Archeology of Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 2002, pp. 35-38
  6. ^ Gunnar Lehmann: Area E. In: A. Kempinski: Tel Kabri. The 1986-1993 Excavations , 2002, pp. 73-90
  7. ^ Na'ama Scheftelowitz: Area EB In: A. Kempinski: Tel Kabri. The 1986-1993 Excavations , 2002, pp. 19-34
  8. ↑ Yasur-Landau, Cline, Goshen: Egypt and Levant. XXIV (2014), p. 355

literature

1956 survey

  • M. Stekelis: .על גרעין האובידיאן שנמצא בקיבוץ כברי In: Eretz Israel , Volume 5 (1958), pp. 35-37 (Hebrew).
  • M. Stekelis: An obsidian core found at Kibbutz Kabri. In: Eretz Israel , Volume 5 (1958), p. 85 * (English summary).

1957–1958 rescue excavations

  • MW Prausnitz: The excavations at Kabri . In: Eretz Israel , Volume 9 (1969), pp. 122-129 (Hebrew).
  • MW Prausnitz: Cabri. In: Israel Exploration Journal , Volume 9 (1969), pp. 268-269 (English summary of the excavations 1957-1958).

1975–1976 rescue excavations

  • MW Prausnitz, A. Kempinski: Kabri, 1976 . In: Israel Exploration Journal , Vol. 27 (1977), pp. 165-166.

The Tel Kabri Expedition 1986–1993: Final Report

  • A. Kempinski: Tel Kabri. The 1986-1993 Excavations ( Emery and Claire Yass Publications in Archeology ). Edited by N. Scheftelowitz and R. Oren. Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 2002.

The Tel Kabri Expedition 1986–1993: Preliminary Reports

  • A. Kempinski: Excavations at Kabri, 1: Preliminary Report of the 1986 Season. Tel Aviv University Press, Tel Aviv 1987.
  • A. Kempinski: Excavations at Kabri, 2: Preliminary Report of the 1987 Season. Tel Aviv University Press, Tel Aviv 1988.
  • A. Kempinski: Excavations at Kabri, 3: Preliminary Report of the 1988 Season. Tel Aviv University Press, Tel Aviv 1989.
  • A. Kempinski, WD Niemeier: Excavations at Kabri, 4: Preliminary Report of the 1989 Season. Tel Aviv University Press, Tel Aviv 1990.
  • A. Kempinski, WD Niemeier: Excavations at Kabri, 5: Preliminary Report of the 1990 Season. Tel Aviv University Press, Tel Aviv 1991.
  • A. Kempinski, WD Niemeier: Excavations at Kabri, 6: Preliminary Report of the 1991 Season. Tel Aviv University Press, Tel Aviv 1992.
  • A. Kempinski, WD Niemeier: Excavations at Kabri, 7-8: Preliminary Report of the 1992-1993 Seasons. Tel Aviv University Press, Tel Aviv 1994.

1999 rescue excavations

2004 rescue excavations

The Tel Kabri Archaeological Project: Dig reports of the ongoing dig

The Tel Kabri Archaeological Project: Further preliminary reports

  • Assaf Yasur-Landau, Eric H. Cline, Nurith Goshen: Initial Results of the Stratigraphy and Chronology of the Tel Kabri Middle Bronze Age Palace. In: Egypt and Levante , Volume XXIV (2014), pp. 355–364.

Web links

Commons : Tel Kabri  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 33 ° 0 ′ 0 ″  N , 35 ° 8 ′ 0 ″  E