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Tell Keisan

Tell Keisan aerial view facing northwest

Tel Keisan Excavation Website - University of Chicago


Names
Transliterated Name Source Name
Tell Keisan Arabic تل كيسان
Tel Kisson, Tel Kison Hebrew תל כיסון
Introduction
Introduction

Tell Keisan (Heb. Tel Kison) is located in the central northern basin of the Acco Coastal Plain (map reference 164.253), some 8 km (5 mi.) from the Mediterranean Sea as the crow flies; it is not strictly a coastal site, as it is separated from the sea by a strip of sand and marshland and is more organically connected with the hilly region of Lower Galilee, about 3-4 km (2-2.5 mi.) away. The proximity of Tell Keisan to the port of Acco nevertheless links it to the coastal region. The prominent mound rises some 25 m above its cultivated surroundings. It is oval-shaped and covers an area of about 15 a. The path up the mound leads to a depression that divides it into two parts of almost equal area. Each of the summits, eastern and western, rises about 42 m above sea level.

The ancient name of the site is unknown; the Arabic name Keisan, which means "(Place of) Betrayal," is mentioned in Arabic sources beginning in the twelfth century and probably should not be dated any earlier. Among the identifications that have been suggested (without solid evidence) are Kishion (Jos. 19:20), Allammelech (Jos. 19:26), and Mishal (Jos. 19:26). The most logical identification is the city of Achshaph, referred to in Papyrus Anastasi I as situated in the region "south of Acco," although this geographical designation does not fit Tell Keisan exactly; Achshaph is also mentioned in the Bible (Jos. 11:1, 12:20, 19:25), but the passages in question are either of late origin or the outcome of late redaction, and so cannot be considered trustworthy evidence.

History

The earliest remains found at the site were from the Neolithic period. Settlers were probably attracted to the marshes in the vicinity, which teemed with easily hunted prey. The settlers made their homes on a rocky hill, at whose foot they later dug a well. The settlement later derived its prosperity from the surrounding fertile lands. While Acco was an important port, much coveted by the great powers of the region - all of whom made attempts to conquer it - the city at Tell Keisan was a center of food production, Acco's major granary, and a commercial outpost between the coastal and hilly regions. The two cities were thus interdependent.

Occupation of the site peaked in the third and second millennia. At that time no major highway ran along the coast between Haifa and Acco: the road from Acco to the Kishon port probably detoured to avoid the marshes just east of the tell; it may have been crossed there by a minor highway from Mount Carmel to Hazor through Aphek (Tel Kurdani) and Tell Bir el-Gharbi (Tel Regiv). Nevertheless, Tell Keisan had no particular strategic significance, and its fortification in the Early and Middle Bronze ages attests more to its function as a refuge for the area's large population in troubled times. Whatever the case may be, it is clear that the city at Tell Keisan was dependent on Acco; in the Bronze Age it may have been a link in the chain of defensive cities that both defended the kingdom and controlled the cultivated land around them. After the Bronze Age, the site was not fortified.

Because of its proximity to the coast, Keisan was affected by the invasion of the Sea Peoples. At the beginning and end of the Iron Age, it maintained close contacts with Cyprus and, from that time onward, remained open to Aegean influences. Its prosperity came to an end at the beginning of the first millennium BCE. The Iron Age II was apparently a period of weakness and decline for the city. Indications to that effect are discernible in the Bible, if Keisan was indeed situated in the "land of Cabul" (1 Kg. 9: 11-13) and was one of the twenty cities that King Solomon gave Hiram, king of Tyre - the cities that "did not please" the latter, presumably because of their poverty. The decline clearly continued to the end of the first millennium BCE, although a surprising renascence of the city occurred in the eighth and seventh centuries BCE. Although these centuries are commonly known as the Neo-Assyrian period, this part of Phoenicia, known as the "land of the Sidonians," was probably independent at the time, perhaps because of its commercial nature. In the Byzantine period, Tell Keisan was the site of a small settlement clustered about a church, which was built with stones from the Middle Bronze Age II glacis.

The summit of the mound commands a view of the entire Coastal Plain of Acco and the hills to the east; no other site in the region affords such a view. It is not surprising, therefore, that Saladin selected Tell Keisan as the site of his headquarters during his siege of Crusader Acre (Acco).

Exploration and Excavations

Exploration and Excavations between 1922 and 1980

G. Garstang visited Tell Keisan in 1922 and excavated here in 1935-1936, as director of the Nielson Expedition; the field director was A. Rowe. Political disturbances in 1936 interrupted the work. The finds, which were salvaged and taken to London, were damaged in the Blitz during World War II. In 1970, R. de Vaux visited the site, and in 1971 excavations were initiated under the auspices of the Ecole Biblique et Archeologique Francaise in Jerusalem. DeVaux died after the first season and was replaced by J. Prignaud, J. Briend, and J.-B. Humbert. Eight seasons of excavations were carried out from 1971 to 1980.

Wikipedia

1935-1936
1971-1979
  • Led by R. de Vaux, J. Pringnaud, J. Briend, and J.-B. Humbert.[2]
  • École Biblique et Archéologique Française in Jerusalem.
  • Unearthed a church and a stone carving of a cross dated to the 6th c. CE.[4]
  • According to Pritchard (1981), this excavation is of major importance to the archaeological understanding of the Iron age in this region.[11]
2002
  • Directed by Y. Tepper, with the assistance of Y. Ya‘aqoby and Y. Dangor.
  • Conducted on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority and funded by the Municipality of Tamra.[12]
  • Dig conducted north east of the tell.
  • Discovered ruins spanning multiple periods which show that the city extended the boundary of the tell at times.
2005 and 2006
  • Four small digs of the wall and areas surrounding the tell, conducted by the Israel Antiquities Authority in tandem with various other institutions.[4][13][14][15]
2016-present

Maps, Aerial Views, Plans, Illustrations, Sections, and Photos
Maps, Aerial Views, Plans, Illustrations, Sections, and Photos

Maps

Normal Size

  • Plate 1a Location Map
    Plate 1a

    Puits = Well, Flueve = River

    Location Map

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    from Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Plate 1b Geologic Map
    Plate 1b

    Geologic Map

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    from Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Map of the Land of Cabul
    Map of the Land of Cabul during the Canaanite and Israelite periods

    (based on Bible Mapper 3.0)

    Used with permission from BibleWalks.com
    during the Canaanite and Israelite periods from BibleWalks.com
  • Fig. 1 Map of the Plain
    Fig. 1

    Map of the Plain of Acre during the times of the Crusades

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    of Acre during the times of the Crusades from Briend and Humbert (1980)

Magnified

  • Plate 1a Location Map
    Plate 1a

    Location Map

    Puits = Well, Flueve = River

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    from Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Plate 1b Geologic Map
    Plate 1b

    Geologic Map

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    from Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Map of the Land of Cabul
    Map of the Land of Cabul during the Canaanite and Israelite periods

    (based on Bible Mapper 3.0)

    Used with permission from BibleWalks.com
    during the Canaanite and Israelite periods from BibleWalks.com
  • Fig. 1 Map of the Plain
    Fig. 1

    Map of the Plain of Acre during the times of the Crusades

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    of Acre during the times of the Crusades from Briend and Humbert (1980)

Aerial Views

  • Annotated Satellite Photo
    Annotated Satellite Photo of Tell Keisan and surroundings

    Used with permission from BibleWalks.com
    of Tell Keisan and surroundings from BibleWalks.com
  • Tell Keisan in Google Earth
    Tell Keisan

    click on image to explore this site on a new tab in Google Earth
  • Tell Keisan on govmap.gov.il
    Tell Keisan

    click on image to explore this site on a new tab in govmap.gov.il

Plans and Illustrations

Site Plans

Normal Size

Magnified

Area Plans and Illustrations

Area B

Normal Size

  • Fig. 51 Plan of
    Fig. 51

    Plan of Structures of Level 9A (Area B)

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    Structures of Level 9A (Area B) from Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Fig. 52 Axonometric
    Fig. 52

    Axonometric view of level 9a (Area B), and distribution of ceramics. N.B.: The numbering of the objects is that of the plates, or failing that, the inv. no..

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    view of Level 9A (Area B) and distribution of ceramics from Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Fig. 7 Axonometric
    Fig. 7

    Axonometric view of the "House of 11th"

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    view of the "House of 11th" from Briend and Humbert (1980)

Magnified

  • Fig. 51 Plan of
    Fig. 51

    Plan of Structures of Level 9A (Area B)

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    Structures of Level 9A (Area B) from Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Fig. 52 Axonometric
    Fig. 52

    Axonometric view of level 9a (Area B), and distribution of ceramics. N.B.: The numbering of the objects is that of the plates, or failing that, the inv. no..

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    view of Level 9A (Area B) and distribution of ceramics from Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Fig. 7 Axonometric
    Fig. 7

    Axonometric view of the "House of 11th"

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    view of the "House of 11th" from Briend and Humbert (1980)

Sections and Photos

Normal Size

  • Fig. 5 Succession
    Fig. 5

    Succession of Levels 9 to 11 in the "House of 11th"

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    of Levels 9 to 11 in the "House of 11th" from Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Fig. 6 Section of
    Fig. 6

    Section of Destruction Layer 5281 (Level 9A)

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    9A Destruction Layer (Locus 5281) from Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Plate 120a Destruction
    Plate 120a

    The destruction layer sealing Locus 501(Level 9a)

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    layer sealing Locus 501(Level 9a) from Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Plate 120b brick wall
    Plate 120b

    The brick wall layer before removal

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    layer before removal from Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Plate 120c Plan View
    Plate 120c

    The brick wall layer: plan view.

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    of brick wall layer from Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Plate 120d Section of
    Plate 120d

    Section of the destruction layer (see fig. 6)

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    the destruction layer (see fig. 6) from Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Plate 120e The position
    Plate 120e

    The position of the racks shows the direction of the fall of the bricks (from left to right)

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    of the racks shows direction of fall of the bricks from Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Plate 121a Jar bases
    Plate 121a

    Jar bases stuck in the ground of Locus 606 (level 9a)

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    stuck in the ground of Locus 606 (level 9a) from Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Plate 121b Jar on
    Plate 121b

    Jar on the roof of Locus 501 (level 9a)

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    the roof of Locus 501 (level 9a) from Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Plate 121c floors
    Plate 121c

    In section: raising the floors above wall 5229 (level 9a)

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    above wall 5229 (level 9a) from Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Plate 121d Locus 512:
    Plate 121d

    Locus 512: Portico and storage jar (level 9a)

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    Portico and storage jar (level 9a) from Briend and Humbert (1980)

Magnified

  • Fig. 5 Succession
    Fig. 5

    Succession of Levels 9 to 11 in the "House of 11th"

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    of Levels 9 to 11 in the "House of 11th" from Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Fig. 6 Section of
    Fig. 6

    Section of Destruction Layer 5281 (Level 9A)

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    9A Destruction Layer (Locus 5281) from Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Plate 120a Destruction
    Plate 120a

    The destruction layer sealing Locus 501(Level 9a)

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    layer sealing Locus 501(Level 9a) from Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Plate 120b brick wall
    Plate 120b

    The brick wall layer before removal

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    layer before removal from Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Plate 120c Plan View
    Plate 120c

    The brick wall layer: plan view.

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    of brick wall layer from Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Plate 120d Section of
    Plate 120d

    Section of the destruction layer (see fig. 6)

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    the destruction layer (see fig. 6) from Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Plate 120e The position
    Plate 120e

    The position of the racks shows the direction of the fall of the bricks (from left to right)

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    of the racks shows direction of fall of the bricks from Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Plate 121a Jar bases
    Plate 121a

    Jar bases stuck in the ground of Locus 606 (level 9a)

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    stuck in the ground of Locus 606 (level 9a) from Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Plate 121b Jar on
    Plate 121b

    Jar on the roof of Locus 501 (level 9a)

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    the roof of Locus 501 (level 9a) from Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Plate 121c floors
    Plate 121c

    In section: raising the floors above wall 5229 (level 9a)

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    above wall 5229 (level 9a) from Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Plate 121d Locus 512:
    Plate 121d

    Locus 512: Portico and storage jar (level 9a)

    Briend and Humbert (1980)
    Portico and storage jar (level 9a) from Briend and Humbert (1980)

Chronology
Stratigraphy

Entire Site

Briend and Humbert (1980)

Table 1

Stratigraphy and Chronological Table

Briend and Humbert (1980)


Seton-Williams and Garstang (1947) based on Excavations from 1935-1936

Level(s) Description
I Early Hellenistic; rubble floor with traces of plaster
II Persian-Hellenistic; plaster floor
III and IV Iron I, floors indicated by base of masonry walls
V Iron I; rubble floor.
VI Iron I; plaster floor with small broken sherds on it
VII Late Bronze-Iron Age I; earth and lime floor
VIII Late Bronze-Iron Age I; rubble floor
IX Late Bronze-lron Age I; floor indicated by rough stones at east of the trench
X Late Bronze-Iron Age I; floor indicated by base of broken pottery oven and of wall to its west
XI Late Bronze: this is really an occupation level above a wall. The wall actually extends to tbe floor of Level XII
XII Late Bronze; floor indicated by base of the wall referred to in description of the last level
XIII Late Bronze (disturbed); floor indicated by base of masonry wall
XIV Laie Bronze and middle Bronze II; floor indicated by base of masonry wall
XV Middle Bronze II and I: this level is represented chiefly by a great stone fortification wall

Time Periods

Time periods from Stern et al (1993)

Age Dates Comments
Early Bronze IA-B 3300-3000 BCE
Early Bronze II 3000-2700 BCE
Early Bronze III 2700-2200 BCE
Middle Bronze I 2200-2000 BCE EB IV - Intermediate Bronze
Middle Bronze IIA 2000-1750 BCE
Middle Bronze IIB 1750-1550 BCE
Late Bronze I 1550-1400 BCE
Late Bronze IIA 1400-1300 BCE
Late Bronze IIB 1300-1200 BCE
Iron IA 1200-1150 BCE
Iron IB 1150-1100 BCE
Iron IIA 1000-900 BCE
Iron IIB 900-700 BCE
Iron IIC 700-586 BCE
Babylonian & Persian 586-332 BCE
Early Hellenistic 332-167 BCE
Late Hellenistic 167-37 BCE
Early Roman 37 BCE - 132 CE
Herodian 37 BCE - 70 CE
Late Roman 132-324 CE
Byzantine 324-638 CE
Early Arab 638-1099 CE Umayyad & Abbasid
Crusader & Ayyubid 1099-1291 CE
Late Arab 1291-1516 CE Fatimid & Mameluke
Ottoman 1516-1917 CE

Time periods from Meyers et al (1997)

Phase Dates Variants
Early Bronze IA-B 3400-3100 BCE
Early Bronze II 3100-2650 BCE
Early Bronze III 2650-2300 BCE
Early Bronze IVA-C 2300-2000 BCE Intermediate Early-Middle Bronze, Middle Bronze I
Middle Bronze I 2000-1800 BCE Middle Bronze IIA
Middle Bronze II 1800-1650 BCE Middle Bronze IIB
Middle Bronze III 1650-1500 BCE Middle Bronze IIC
Late Bronze IA 1500-1450 BCE
Late Bronze IIB 1450-1400 BCE
Late Bronze IIA 1400-1300 BCE
Late Bronze IIB 1300-1200 BCE
Iron IA 1200-1125 BCE
Iron IB 1125-1000 BCE
Iron IC 1000-925 BCE Iron IIA
Iron IIA 925-722 BCE Iron IIB
Iron IIB 722-586 BCE Iron IIC
Iron III 586-520 BCE Neo-Babylonian
Early Persian 520-450 BCE
Late Persian 450-332 BCE
Early Hellenistic 332-200 BCE
Late Hellenistic 200-63 BCE
Early Roman 63 BCE - 135 CE
Middle Roman 135-250 CE
Late Roman 250-363 CE
Early Byzantine 363-460 CE
Late Byzantine 460-638 CE
Early Arab 638-1099 CE
Crusader & Ayyubid 1099-1291 CE
Late Arab 1291-1516 CE
Ottoman 1516-1917 CE

The Iron Age in the Southern Levant

Pharaohs/Egypt

Phase 9A earthquake (?) - Iron I - ~1000 BCE

Discussion

Humbert in Stern et. al. (1993 v. 3:866) reports that Stratum 9A was destroyed by fire. In what was likely a two storey domestic structure in Area B, Briend and Humbert (1980:22-23) uncovered a sealed destruction layer up to 1m thick consisting of and/or interpreted as a collapsed roof, burnt plant material, burnt furniture, and collapsed mudbricks still assembled in courses. Briend and Humbert (1980:22-23) interpreted the stratigraphy of the destruction layer to posit a chronological sequence of destruction:

  • First the furniture burned leaving a layer of black ash directly on the paved floor.
  • Then the roof collapsed leaving a 10-20 cm thick layer of granular brick earth, reddened by the fire, and containing the remains of a frame of wooden beams.
  • Then plant materials stored on the terrace (kindling, straw, harvest ...) burned leaving a 10 cm thick powdery white ash.
  • Then adobe slabs from the walls fell producing a 2-3 cm thick layer.
  • Finally the mudbrick walls collapsed.
Humbert in Stern et. al. (1993 v. 3:866) date this destruction to about 1000 BCE while noting, however, that there is no concrete evidence to support this date and that it is only a conjecture that the destruction occurred concurrently with that of Tell Abu Hawam IV, Hazor XI, Megiddo VIA, and Tell Qasile X. Briend and Humbert (1980:213) used ceramics to date Phases 9A and 9B to Iron I. They noted that undeniably, the ceramics presented offer all the characteristics of Iron I with features that bring it closer to the tradition of the Late Bronze Age. Briend and Humbert (1980:214) further dated Phases 9a and 9b to between 1050 and 1000 BCE.

Humbert in Stern et. al. (1993 v. 3:866) suggested that the destruction of Keisan, like that of Tell Abu Hawam IV, was probably due to local events as the nearby grain fields had always been controlled by the inhabitants of the coastal region, and when newcomers began to covet the fertile land, a fierce struggle must have ensued. They noted that there were no Biblical references to conquest by King David and David's military campaign to the north (2 Sam. 8:3-12) was aimed at Syria (Aram) and he did not march up the coast.

Cline (2011:67) suggested that the Keisan 9A destruction may be related to and coincident with the Megiddo VIA destruction. Cline (2011:67) attributed the Megiddo VIA destruction to an earthquake. While the Megiddo VIA destruction layer may have been related to seismic activity, the fact that the mudbrick walls collapsed last in the domestic structure examined by Briend and Humbert (1980:22-23) suggests that a fire led to structural collapse rather than structural collapse (due to an earthquake) led to a fire.

References
Briend and Humbert (1980) - Excavation Report

Chapter 3 - Excavations: Objectives, Method, And Stratigraphy by J.B. Humbert

B) Stratigraphic Study

c) Area B

2) Trench II

Levels 6-8 (Iron II A and B)

These levels, which actually include six sets of layers, demonstrate a great continuity of occupation.

The beginnings of level 8 are very modest, and accommodate the remains emerging from the destruction of level 9a: the locations and orientation of the buildings are preserved. During this period, which can be estimated at almost two centuries, the city experienced peace, and perhaps a certain dynamism, if we judge by the numerous repairs or alterations observed. The transformations are made according to needs, without synchronization; the establishment of plans for these levels is sometimes quite arbitrary, due to the difficulty of assigning certain walls to a given level. Only the counting of the floors allowed a variable succession of levels.

An example illustrates the difficulty in determining levels: eight jars were found in a store, Locus 621 (see fig. 48). It seemed coherent to attach this Locus to level 6, some of whose Loci (e.g. Loci 680 and 646, cf. fig. 47) also contained complete ceramics, level 6 having been abandoned with its ceramics. However, the allocation of the floors, to the east of wall 5224 (level 7) raised by wall 2001 (level 6), was made delicate by their poor preservation; the floors are very torn up at the edge of tel1, and the proximity of the slope could systematically have led to a slight detachment during the construction of the floors compared to the corresponding Locus on the plateau. On the other hand, the abandoned layer after level 6 was dissolved at the edges of the slope and the jars seemed to rest lower. Finally, the succession of floors of level 8 is assured, and the jars were associated with the soil of the immediately posterior level. The coherence of the stratigraphy therefore requires attributing Locus 621 to level 7, and the presence of jars abandoned at this level remains unexplained.

Level 9

On the precarious remains of an older level (10), a solid and prosperous city was rebuilt. It went through three phases, represented by floors 6160, 5285 and 5240, visible on the right on the section.

The house located to the south, of the "three-room house" type (fig. 5), is a good witness to the architectural evolution during level 9. During the construction of the house (level 9c) the external walls, such as wall 6102, which limits the insula to the south, were made of large squared blocks in concrete blocks, wedged by small stones, and coated with rammed earth. The internal partitions (see wall 6144, fig. 5) seem to have been made of raw brick.

In a second phase (level 9b), the house was modified: e.g. stone partition walls, pavement in the main room (Locus 501, cf. fig. 52). The final phase (level 9a) seems a little decadent: e.g. partition walls were repaired without care and pebble pavement (5240) was more coarse. In addition, some walls are outdated: floor 5273 of Locus 502 (level 9a) passes over the stone base of wall 5229 (of level 9b).

Level 9a is covered by layer 5281, sometimes more than a metre thick, which bears witness to violent destruction (fig. 6): it is largely made up of the remains of raw bricks from collapsed walls. Despite slight damage due to level 8, this layer has been remarkably preserved on Locus 501 (fig. 52): the large bricks of a collapsed wall lay on edge, still assembled in courses (see fig. 6, locus 5281); these bricks, unequally fired by the fire11, often had a beautiful red, yellow or brown tint, isolated by grey-brown joints.

Examination of the section allows us to reconstruct the process of destruction. The best-preserved brick courses of the collapsed wall are near wall 5222, and not partition 5253 (see fig. 6), on the side of which the bricks are dispersed by centrifugal force, and damaged by the impact on the ground12. Furthermore, this collapsed wall has a vault shape and rests on a first collapse: during the destruction, the roof first collapsed, then the upper part of the raw bricks of wall 5222 fell, dragged by the roof towards the north, inside the house.

We can in fact discern four successive layers under the fallen wall:
  • immediately under the bricks, adobe slabs from the wall's rendering over two or three cm
  • under the rammed earth, a layer of powdery white ash, 10 cm thick, from consumed plant materials
  • under the ash, a layer of 10 to 20 cm of granular brick earth, reddened by the fire, and containing the remains of a frame of wooden beams
  • on the stone floor, a thick layer of black ash
These elements can be interpreted simply:
  • the black ash comes from the furniture of the room
  • the wooden frame and the brick earth come from the roof, stricto sensu
  • the plant ash is residual from the materials stored on the terrace: kindling, straw, harvest ... This explanation is reinforced by the presence of a jar taken from this ash: located on the roof of the house, it probably contained a product protected from theft and rodents.
 At the end of this inventory of materials, it is possible to restore an elevation of the house (fig. 7 and 8). Part of the stone base of wall 5222 is preserved over its entire height: the rubble covering wall 6102 is topped with large flat slabs, forming a laying bed for the bricks of the upper part of the wall. The height of the stone base is 90 cm, and the restored elevation of the 15 courses of bricks, 13 cm thick, corresponds to 1.95 m: the height under the ceiling of the room is therefore 2.85 m; the room, despite the smallness of its plan, thus has a normal volume (see fig. 7).
Footnotes

(11) The apparent unevenness of firing is perhaps due to the heterogeneity of the raw material: the brick-makers had opened quarries in the debris of ancient layers, on the same ground: in fact, the bricks contained many Early Bronze Age (BA II) shards.

(12) A chance experiment confirmed this view: a stack of cardboard racks, placed on a slightly sloping ground, and accidentally left in the rain, collapsed, giving a configuration very similar to the cross-section of our brick wall (see Plate 120e).

D) Stratigraphic Synthesis And Chronology

In the established stratigraphic sequence, eight levels cover the Iron Age. Those at the beginning of the period, 9a, b, and c, 10a and b, and 11 and those which end it, 4a and b, and 5 form two correctly stratified sets which, having undergone destruction, have provided a characterized and abundant material. These two sets will allow chronological remarks.

The ceramics of level 9 include in particular luster pottery with red decoration called "mycenaean", pottery called Philistine and large pithoi known under the name "Collared Rim". These three categories are gathered in the early c phase of level 9. The beta phases present a slight evolution. This material refers to Megiddo VIA, T. Abu Hawam IV, T. Qasile X, Hazor XII-XI. Already B. Maisler (BASOR, 124, 1951) proposed to associate the destructions of Megiddo VIA, T. Abu Hawam IV and T. Qasile X. We propose to add Keisan 9. In no case can we place the end of Megiddo VIA and Hazor XI after the beginning of the Davidic monarchy. Even if we still hesitate about the duration of stratum III of Tell Abu Hawam, it is appropriate to place the end of stratum IV c. 1000.

The question of dating the beginning of level 9 is more delicate. In the chapter dealing with the ceramics of this level, we will point out the "old" characteristics in the Iron I of the material from the layers of phase 9c. The many affinities that can be found with the ceramics of the Late Bronze Age are not a sufficient reason to situate the beginning of level 9 more or less high in the 12th century. The ceramic types inherited from the Bronze Age are maintained throughout the first Iron Age and will only disappear after the year 1000. This is demonstrated, for example, by the sub-Mycenaean types in the so-called "Philistine" ceramics. These typological permanences would even seem characteristic of the Iron I, at least on the coast of the Levant. However, even if the traditions of the Late Bronze Age are effective, they do not impose the 12th century. The decorations of the "Philistine" sherds appear neglected and would rather indicate the end of the period. The comparison with the chronology of Hazor is authorized. Keisan 9 has parallels in Hazor XI and XII. The affinities are established for example with the pithoi, but they have been attributed to stratum XII which covers, according to the excavator, approximately the 12th century. One could, then conceive of stratum XII of Hazor as shorter and closer to 1100, or ca. 1100. The argument it is true is not strong enough if it is based only on the comparison of one or two types, and one cannot go too far down the destruction of Hazor XIII. Finally the stratification of the layers of level 9 does not allow it to be spread over too long a period. The accumulation of soils, thick and regular, and the three successive alterations noted in the three-roomed house attest to a long period of peace; but it is not assigned more than a century. Consequently, if we place the destruction of Keisan 9 contemporary with Megiddo VIA, etc., that is to say c. 1000, the beginning of this ninau will be discovered after 1100. Possible relationships with the protogeometric of Cyprus (necropolis of Alaas), would confirm the hypothesis of the beginning of the 11th century.

Furthermore, the stratification of levels 10 a & b and 11 seems to be of even more rapid constitution. The accumulation of debris from the dismantled level 11, then the contributions of materials poor in shards from levels 10a & b testify to this. We will postulate the ruin of level 11, c. 1100; it therefore probably belongs to the 12th century. Unfortunately it has not yielded any material. We can ask the question of the causes of the destruction or decline of a well-built and prosperous city at the very end of the 12th century. In any case, we must admit that the architectural sequence for the Iron Age is complete, but that the ceramic sequence is incomplete: the entire 12th century is missing. The link with the Late Bronze Age remains to be made.

The chronological relationships between T. Keisan and Cyprus during the first half of the first millennium are not easy to establish. We will therefore not claim to contribute to clarifying the difficult chronological comparisons between Cyprus and the Palestinian sites. Indeed, the layers of levels 6 to 9 have not yielded enough well-stratified imported material. The White Painted is absent, as is the Geometric. The Black on Red sherds are not rare, but only two characteristic sherds belong to level 8; that is to say that its presence can be affirmed in the first half of the 10th century.

The sequence of levels 6, 7 and 8, because of its remarkable continuity, has not yielded significant imported material. The proposed dates are the result of a combination of the observed ceramic synchronisms and the imperatives of stratigraphy.

It should be noted that the "Samaria" ceramic is only present in level 5. This does not mean that it does not appear before the date 750, assigned for the beginning of level 5. It is noted that it is mainly attested in the ancient layers of this level, that is to say in the second half of the 8th century. Nor can it be said when it disappeared: such a prized and widespread pottery could not have ceased overnight, and there is every reason to believe that it continued in multiple counterfeits. The shape of the thin-walled bowls was believed to be found up to the beginning of the 6th century, without red luster but with a kind of orange tempera.

The criteria for situating the last sequence of the Iron Age, level 4a-b, are more numerous. The link between 4a and Cyprus is first established through the amphorae of Tomb 3 of Salamis. There is no reason to doubt the chronology established by V. Karageorghis who dates them to the end of the Cypro-archaic I, c. 600. In fact, the chronology proposed by E. Gjerstad a nd on which he relies is reliable for the lower periods because it is related to Ionian and Attic ceramics. The paleography of the few letters inscribed on these amphorae corroborates the date of 600. Phase 4b presents a ceramic with more clearly Phoenician characters; thanks to the contents of pit 5049b, we find the material associated with the Phoenician cremation tombs typical of the 3rd century. The jar called "with folded lip" is also attested in the tombs of the same period in Carthage; the red jars with rounded shoulders from this phase 4b find good parallels in Spain, for the beginning of the 3rd century. The shards of Ionian cups and those decorated in the "Wild Goat" style confirm the attribution of the date c. 650 to the beginning of level 4.

A few Attic red-figure shards have helped to locate the layers belonging to the 5th century. It seemed preferable to attach the greater part of the 1st century to the Hellenistic period, in order to maintain coherence in the ceramic ensembles; consequently the term "Hellenistic" is only used as a chronological reference.

Chapter 11 - Levels 9 - 11 (Iron I) by J. Briend

A) Structures

a) Level 9a

1. Area B

Underneath the destruction layer we discussed previously, a level appears which is both sealed and relatively rich in material. This is level 9 where we can distinguish three main phases.

During the most recent phase (9a), the building of greatest interest was discovered in the southern part of Site B; beyond the alterations undergone, it includes four Loci (501; 502; 512; 503) which we present in detail (fig. 51).

Locus 501 is limited to the south by wall 5222 and to the west by wall 6076. These walls are built of large stones that served as a base for a brick elevation as we will show. The interior facing of these walls was made of small stones covered with a yellow rammed earth coating. Where it could be seen, this fragile coating was 5 cm thick.

The floor of Locus 501 was covered with paving stones (5239) that are almost entirely preserved; only the north-east corner was torn off by a pillaging pit, a phenomenon that we will find again in Locus 502. These paving stones are at level 37.97/37.86. The house was carefully constructed, both in the choice of materials and in execution (see ch. III). The paving is thick and well-fitted, the walls coated with a layer of rammed earth, traces of which remain on the stone base of wall 6076. Locus 501 represents the master bedroom of the house and the material found there confirms this. A whole list of objects is noted: in the corner formed by walls 5222 and 5237 an amphorae (pl. 57: 3), a scoop (pl. 65: 15) and a jar (5.552 ND) were collected, the stopper of which was found (5.358). A jug (pl. 61: 3) containing a tiny scarab (pl. 88: 11) was found intact, having slipped on the first layer of destruction. It is therefore possible that these objects were found in a niche in wall 5222 and that they fell during the destruction of this wall. Further west in the same Locus, another stopper of a vase made of raw clay (5.120) smaller than the one mentioned above and a painted jar (pl. 57:8) were discovered in the corner of walls 6076 and 5222.

Partition 5253 separates Locus 501 from Locus 502 and represents the last phase of occupation at level 9. Indeed, this wall narrows the width of Locus 502 and is built against a row of slabs that projects beyond pavement 5239. These slabs represent what remains of an earlier partition (6143) and form a bench. In addition to the narrowing noted, Locus 502 offers a series of floors that pass over the western end of wall 5229 and extends above pavement 6103 of Locus 609 (level 9b). Locus 502 thus becomes part of a courtyard whose ground level reaches 38.25, particularly when it covers wall 5229. In an older phase, wall 5229 served as a boundary north at Locus 502, and a floor (5273) at elevation 38.10/37.80 covers the surface of the Locus where there is a hearth (5288). A cobblestone (6088) placed between the north end of wall 6076 and the west end of wall 5229 perhaps marks the location of the opening of the Locus to the outside. However, floor 5273 is cut to the east by a pit (5255) which allowed the pillaging of stones from pavement 5240 (Locus 512) and perhaps from wall 5254 by the inhabitants of level 8. Finally, let us specify that no complete vase comes from this Locus, except for a pseudo-pyxis (pl. 61: 10) found in the ashes which covered the west end of wall 5229.

Both Loci 501 and 502, partly closed to the east by walls 5237 and 5254, opened directly onto Locus 512. During the last phase of level 9, the latter was covered with a paving stone (5240), except in its northern part because of the pillaging pit 5255. To the east, this paving stops on a line marked by four slabs (5275a, b, c, d) which must have supported wooden posts for the roof. At the southern end of Locus, a stone frame (5238), one side of which was formed by wall 5237, was used to encase a basin made from a recut pithos base (pl. 57: 2). No other object was discovered in this Locus.

To the east of Locus 512, is Locus 503 which has a good soil (5274), especially in its northern part (elevations 38.10 - 37.80). A basin (5241) was discovered there, built of stones laid on edge with two stones, one to the north and the other to the south, having a notch. The bottom of the basin was made of a large slab. Finally, in the angle formed by walls 5230 and 5222, an overturned pithos neck was found (pl. 57: 1) which originally had as its bottom the one discovered in basin 5238. This neck must have served as a support for a jar and must have been related to the work carried out in basin 5241. This support was also wedged by a circle of stones.

Several objects come from Locus 503: an ivory handle (pl. 101: 11), a pivot (pl. 97: 26), a flask (pl. 61: 13) and a lamp (pl. 66: 17), not forgetting the pithos neck (pl. 57: 1).

South of Locus 501, Locus 632 (square J-2) is closed to the west by a mudbrick wall (6042) with an upper elevation of 37.95 and a base of 37.75; this Locus has a floor (6043) sloping from the north (elevation: 38.25) to the south (elevation: 37.70).

North of the building already described, we have seen that the most recent floors of Locus 502 passed over wall 5229 and extended into Locus 628. Against the wall was a large pot (pl. 63: 8).

The area to the north of the excavation is characterized by its silos and by the large number of storage jars discovered in Locus 610, which indicates agricultural and perhaps commercial activity. On the other hand, it is quite difficult to find the plan of this complex and to see its relationship with the house located to the south.

Locus 614 has a floor (6139) at elevation 37.90. A jar (pl. 58: 8) and a bowl (pl. 65: 6) were found there without it being possible to specify the function of this space.

To the west of Locus 614, Locus 606 forms a large rectangle if we agree to associate it with Locus 611 which is surrounded on three sides by brick walls. We note in Locus 606 the presence of a silo (6116) whose bottom is at elevation 36.92, but this silo is associated with floor 6195 at elevation 38.00; it was filled with bricks hardened by fire and covered with black and white ashes. It was in this silo that a scaraboid seal was discovered (pl. 89: 22). In the angle formed by walls 6071 and 6072, five jar bottoms were found (cf. pl. 60: 5-6); one of them had a bronze pellet adhering to the wall, another had a hole near the base.

In Locus 611 we find another silo (6110) whose upper part was filled with pieces of brick; below was found a large flat stone that could help to plug the opening of the silo. The bottom of the perfectly plastered silo contained about a hundred liters of grain, which is studied elsewhere (cf. ch. XXII).

In the fire-hardened brick that covered Locus 635 was unearthed a bowl (pl. 64: 2) enclosing a very crushed two-colored jug (pl. 62: 4) containing a "treasure" presented in ch. XVIII. From this layer was collected a second sample of wheat, identified by Mr. Kislev: mixed with earth, it contained 80 grains of a wheat that its proportions designate as naked wheat. The grains, carbonized, are short and bulging, but too swollen and decomposed to allow precise measurements. They seem, however, to be of similar dimensions to those of the wheat of silo 6110. Since the most common local wheat in the region is durum wheat (Trilicum darum Desf. groupe horanicum Vav.), it is natural to suppose that we are in the presence of this species. With the wheat were also two grains of unidentified gramineae, a spherical dicotyledonous seed, and another seed.

These plants are probably weeds. Finally, the sample contained six small fragments of charred wood.

To the west of Locus 635, Locus 610 appears as a square surrounded on its sides by a small, fairly low brick wall. Inside, the remains of 16 completely crushed jars were discovered (cf. pl. 58: 1, 3; 59: la-4; 60: 1). At this point, the fire must have been particularly intense and smoldered for a long time. The paste of some jars was refired, causing blisters and deformations due to the heat; the color of the ceramic changed, becoming gray. Some jars were completely deformed, making reassembly impossible; this phenomenon can be explained by the combined action of the fire and the pressure exerted by the destruction layer on more or less full jars. It is possible that Locus 610 was filled with plant material that left a 25 cm thickness of gray and yellow ash at the bottom of the Locus. Such material provided fuel for the fire and would explain the very high heat released.

Locus 657, with its floor (6014) sloping from west to east (elevations: 38.40 to 38.22), was perhaps separated from Locus 635 by a brick wall, the outline of which has completely disappeared. There is indeed a difference in elevation between the floor of Locus 657 and that of Locus 635, because Locus 635 has a floor (6100) at elevation 38.10 and another silo (6115) filled with broken bricks was discovered there. Under floor 6100 were found two circular depressions (6127 and 6136) filled with earth before the destruction; they may have been used to contain jars, but at level 9b.

South of Locus 657, Locus 608 has a pavement (6101) at elevation 38.20, a pavement quite comparable to that observed in Locus 501. The excavation did not continue beyond square J-11, so the plan of this residential area is unknown. Locus 608 may mark the north-eastern end of a house other than the one discovered in the southern part of the excavation. It is therefore not possible to decide to which dwelling the structures found to the north belong, but one has the impression that in the excavated area we are dealing with two inhabited spaces nested one inside the other.

2. Area A

In Trench I, two deep test pits have made it possible to reach level 9a (fig. 53).

In square D-4, below the black ash lines, which mark the occupation of this area at levels 8-6 (see fig. 4), the walls of a dwelling were uncovered under a layer of disintegrated bricks. Three Locus (551, 552, 550) were discovered, but the narrowness of the excavation does not allow a complete plan of the house to be drawn up.

Locus 551 is limited to the north by wall 5051 whose upper elevation is at 39.35 and to the west by wall 5052 whose upper elevation is at 39.63; the floor of this Locus is covered with a flagstone (5076) at elevation 39.00. In the northwest corner of Locus the flagstone is interrupted and gives way to a quarter circle filled with loose earth.

Locus 552, separated from Locus 551 by wall 5052, has a plastered floor (5078), but inclined from north to south between elevations 39.13 and 38.92.

The construction method of this house corresponds to what can be seen in the house at level 9a (Site B). The foundation of the walls is made of small stones on which were placed larger stones with a flat upper face; above were the courses of brick.

To the north of the house, Locus 550 does not seem to have had a floor; around elevation 39.00 the earth is hard and there are only a few sherds. This surface may have been a passageway outside the house or a courtyard. No pottery was found in Locus 550, but in Locus 551 were discovered a bowl (pl. 66:9) and a two-colored jug (pl. 62:8) comparable to those found in level 9a-b of Site B. In Locus 552, a small gourd (pl. 62:10) was unearthed as well as a lamp (pl. 66:14) placed on wall 5052.

7 m to the north, in square E-3, a deep test pit intended to specify the extent of the filling discovered in Site B made it possible to reach through layers of bricks inclined from south to north a wall (5098) and a paving stone (5099) which is at elevation 37.94. The elevation of this paving stone is identical to that of the paving stone in Locus 501 (lv. 9a) of Site B.

Between the two squares E-3 and D-4, the slope is very steep, reaching almost one meter if we compare the ground elevations. The study of the sections (fig. 2 and 4) reveals the existence of a break in the slope between the two squares. This break was filled by thick layers of bricks that came from the destruction of level 9a. This leveling was undertaken by the inhabitants of level 8c who leveled the layer of destruction to level the ground.

b) Level 9b

Although it was not located on the whole of Site B, because the excavation stopped partly at level 9a, level 9b was discovered at several points and shows modifications compared to level 9a.

Where these modifications are best observed is in the building already described (level 9a) in the southern part of the Area.

Locus 612 received at level 9b the 5239 paving which will remain in use until the end of level 9. In fact, the most important change affects the partition (6143) which separates Locus 612 from Locus 629 located to the north. This partition is made of large stones which were partly included in wall 5253 of level 9a; it separates Locus 612 from Locus 629 which becomes wider than at level 9a. The upper part of this partition was made of brick.

Locus 629 is covered with a thick floor (6150) (dimensions: 37.90/37.80), which passes under wall 5253 of level 9a. There is an oven (6174) placed against wall 6076 and a large stone circle (6111) which marks the location of a hearth. At one point this Locus is no longer closed to the east by wall 5254 whose lower elevation is at 37.80. Then another floor (6099) at elevation 37.60 covers the Locus up to a small paving which stops abruptly to the east, just in front of the possible tearing off of a wall older than wall 5254.

Locus 514 includes the two Locus 512 and 503 which already in level 9a formed only one covered room. Under slab 5240 (Locus 512, level 9a) there is a floor (5285) often redone between elevations 37.80 and 37.60. This floor is interrupted by the presence of a hearth (5286) and stops in front of a pit 5248. This represents the tearing out of a structure that was filled before making basin 5238 (level 9a). In the eastern part of the Locus, there is a series of floors at the same elevations as in the western part. One may wonder how the roof was supported; slabs similar to those of level 9 existed, but only one was still in place.

South of the Area, in Locus 631, floor 6063 at elevation 37.70 is discovered under floor 6043 of level 9a.

To the north of the three-room house, Locus 609 with its paving (6103) continues to exist with repairs during level 9b. The same is true for Locus 628 whose plastered floors appear in successive layers between elevations 37.80 and 37.65.

To the north of Locus 628, the excavation reached the occupation of level 9b in Locs. 630 and 652. In Locus 630, under floor 6119 of level 9a, there is another floor 6139 around elevation 37.75, to which we can associate the silo 6140 filled during level 9b and where two-color jugs were found (pl. 62: 5-6, 8). Locus 652 with a floor 6179 at elevation 37.80 only extends Locus 630 to the west.

c) Level 9c

Level 9c is very poorly known, since the excavation in Site B stopped almost everywhere either at level 9a or at level 9b. It is therefore not possible to present a plan of level 9c, which future excavations will have to reveal. The few data presented here may therefore be subject to revision.

First of all, wall 5222 (level 9a-b) rests on an older wall (6102) whose upper elevation is at 37.55 and the lower elevation fluctuates between 37.07 and 36.88. Its south face was discovered entirely in square J-2 and shows a good construction in large stones (pl. 122a). To the north of the wall, soils can be associated, one (6145) at the level 37.50/37.40, the other (6146) at the level 16 37.30. In this regard, it can be noted that wall 5237, which closed off Locus 501 (9a) and 612 (9b) to the east, has its base at elevation 37.61/37.48; it cannot therefore belong to level 9c. The latter is below elevation 37.50.

In place of the partition that cut the length of the house in two in its western part, there is a partition made of raw bricks (6144) visible on a small surface and in a section made to the east. This section shows that the brick partition very probably divided the house along its entire length.

To the south of wall 6102 (square J-2), a vast layer of shards (pit 6067) was found under the floor of level 9b. It was very difficult to identify the contours of this layer of rejection: to the east and south, it enters under the benches; so it could not be completely emptied. The reassembly of the ceramic was also made difficult because a large porcupine burrow crossed the pit from east to west in modern times, causing the rejection of a large number of sherds on the slope. The layer, whose surface area can be estimated at at least 20 m2, is not deep; it varies from the edges to the center. The first sherds appeared at elevation 37.48 with a thickness of 15 to 20 cm, and in the center it reached elevation 36.80.

Where did the material in the pit come from, when was it thrown? It is difficult to answer these questions, because the painted ceramics currently have no parallel within the level. 9c unlike the unpainted ceramic, but we should not forget that the latter offers great continuity throughout the Iron I. The study of the ceramic made by E. Puech provides more precise indications on this point. In conclusion, we can consider that the material of the pit belongs to level 9c; no positive argument allows us to place the pit at a time before this level.

To the north of the excavation, level 9c was only reached on small areas. Locus 613 has a floor (6160) at elevation 37.33/37.30 that certainly belongs to level 9c. At the edge of the excavation, Locus 625 has a very thick, hollow floor between elevations 37.40 and 37.20. In the neighboring Locus (626), a small plastered basin (6176) at elevation 37.50/37.40 may belong to level 9c.

d) Level 10

This level 10 was only identified in square J-2 and in a 2.50 x 2 m test pit established between squares K-1 and K-2. In the test pit, floor 5284 of Locus 624 was encountered at elevation 36.65 and was 5 to 10 cm thick. To the south, this floor abuts a brick wall (6123).

In square J-2, a basin floor (6162) was discovered between elevations 36.45 and 36.80. According to the sections, it is to be expected that the walls in this level are made of brick. No stone structures were uncovered.

e) Level 11

In square J-2, a slab (6079) inclined from west to east between elevations 36.48 and 36.30 was uncovered at the deepest point of the excavation. This is a slab of large slabs to the east and smaller flat stones to the west. The wall which, to the north, limited this paving has disappeared and the pillaging of this wall probably explains why in the section the layers sink suddenly, because the pillaging pit was filled in only very slowly. To the east the paving stops and gives way to a plastered floor (6135) at elevation 36.30. The south wall (6091) is made of brick, but the foundation course is made of large quadrangular stones. To the west was discovered at the edge of the excavation a small pebble paving (6166). The paving 6079 represents the floor of Locus 603; to the south of this another Locus (619) has a plastered floor (6134) at elevation 36.22. There is a communication between the Locus 603 and 619, because the paving continues between wall 6166 and the western end of wall 6091.

No ceramics were found on these floors and the date of this important construction cannot be determined. It could be at the beginning of the Iron I or at the end of the Late Bronze Age. However, the sherds collected between the sheet of sherds 6067 and the paving of level 11 are relatively few in number and do not offer any characteristics that force us to consider level 11 as dating from the Late Bronze Age.

D) Conclusions for Levels 9a And 9b

The study of the material allows us to propose a dating for the overall duration of the occupation during the last two phases of level 9. Undeniably, the ceramics presented offer all the characteristics of Iron I with features that bring it closer to the tradition of the Late Bronze Age, which will be even clearer for phase c.

Without going back over each form, we will especially remember the group of bichrome jugs that are also found in Phoenicia during Iron I. These jugs do not appear in phase c of level 9, but only in phases a and b which are very close to each other from a ceramic point of view. The same is not true, as we will see later, of the ceramics of phase c which has very original forms.

The closest parallels have been established with Megiddo VI, Tell Abu Hawam IV, Afula IIIA and Hazor XII, but it will be noted in the latter case that we know very little about the pottery of level XI of Hazor. On this basis, we can retain as a dating for the whole of level 9a-b the second half of the 11th century BC, that is to say between 1050 and 1000.

Appendix - Tell Keisan, 1935-1936 by V. Seton-Williams and J. Garstang

Editor's Note

Thanks to Mrs. J. du Plat Taylor who acted as our efficient intermediary, we have the pleasure of publishing the report prepared by Dr. V. Seton-Williams and revised in 1947 by Professor John Garstang. This text, which constitutes the most complete synthesis of the excavations undertaken by the Neilson Expedition in 1935-36 at T. Keisan, has never been published. Communicated by Dr. Frances W. James of the University of Mississippi at the request of Dr. V. Seton-Williams, the text is published with some minor modifications to adapt it to the publication in which it appears. For the levels of the Late Bronze Age and especially the Middle Bronze Age, the indications provided by the report are very interesting. So this is not just a historical document that we are publishing, but valuable information regarding the fortification of T. Keisan in the Bronze Age.

Report On The Preliminary Investigation (November 25th-December 24th 1935)

With a view of obtaining a section of the mound, a trench 5 to 6 metres wide was cut in the south-east slope from the top to the bottom. In order to remove as many intrusive objects as possible from the ends of the underlying levels, the whole of the surface debris, to a depth of half-a-metre, was first of all cleared away. Then a start was made with unearthing the levels themselves, sixteen of which were discovered, ranging in date from the Early Hellenistic Era to the Early Bronze Age II or before. Whether any pre-Bronze levels exist on the Tell only future excavation will show.

In the following description of each level, supplied by Alan Rowe, the dates follow the pottery analysis of Dr. I. Ben-Dor (cf. pl. 4):
Level(s) Description
I Early Hellenistic; rubble floor with traces of plaster
II Persian-Hellenistic; plaster floor
III and IV Iron I, floors indicated by base of masonry walls
V Iron I; rubble floor.
VI Iron I; plaster floor with small broken sherds on it
VII Late Bronze-Iron Age I; earth and lime floor
VIII Late Bronze-Iron Age I; rubble floor
IX Late Bronze-lron Age I; floor indicated by rough stones at east of the trench
X Late Bronze-Iron Age I; floor indicated by base of broken pottery oven and of wall to its west
XI Late Bronze: this is really an occupation level above a wall. The wall actually extends to tbe floor of Level XII
XII Late Bronze; floor indicated by base of the wall referred to in description of the last level
XIII Late Bronze (disturbed); floor indicated by base of masonry wall
XIV Laie Bronze and middle Bronze II; floor indicated by base of masonry wall
XV Middle Bronze II and I: this level is represented chiefly by a great stone fortification wall

...

Conclusions

The pottery from the trial excavation permits us to come tentatively to some conclusions.

The site has been occupied since the Early Bronze period, probably since EB II or earlier. The EB occupation must have been a very extensive one, for although this level has not been reached in the excavation, numerous EB remains were found in almost every level.

Then comes the occupation of the MB I period, equalled to I-H of TBM, followed by F-G. At that time, i.e. in the pre-Hyksos period, the town certainly ranked among the important ones, if we may judge from the quality of the pottery which reaches a perfection hardly to be beaten by any other site in Palestine. The traces of this culture were especially noticeable in the area covered by the second ramp which must thus be later and belong to the Hyksos period.

The MB II period is very well represented, in its levels (XIV-XV) and even near the surface (middle surface), although very little is found of the true "Hyksos pottery".

The LB period has a very long history on the site as it extends over many levels, but perhaps the occupation was especially strong in the later part of it. The traces of foreign relations are naturally present in a site so near the harbour of Acre. Cypriot and true Mycenaean ware was found in its proper levels, but it would seem that the base-ring ware is rather scarce and may support the supposition that the site flourished rather in LB II than LB I.

The Iron I period is very rich in forms as well in painted pottery. The site was certainly occupied from the very beginning to the end of the period, as shown especially by the evolution of cooking pot forms and by the thickness of the deposit.

Strangely enough, the period of the Divided Monarchy (Iron II) seems to be lacking entirely. Except for a few fragments nothing points to an occupation. The ubiquitous class of ring burnished pottery, for instance, which is found in every site of Iron II period, was not represented, even by a single sherd. lt would be premature to draw any conclusions from this fact now, and we may hope that excavations will clear this problem up also.

During the Persian period the site was occupied again and this occupation lasted til the early Hellenistic time, perhaps until the 3rd-2nd century B.C.

After this, the site was abandoned. Not a single Late Hellenistic, Roman or Byzantine sherd was among the pottery examined.

Stern et al. (1993 v.3)

EXCAVATION RESULTS

The locations of the excavation areas in the 1971-1980 seasons were largely dictated by the available uncultivated land on the mound and the areas excavated in the 1930s. A trench (5 m wide) cut in the southeastern slope helped determine the stratigraphic sequence: sixteen strata, from the Early Bronze Age to the Hellenistic period, were distinguished in the trench. Trial soundings in the plain just south of the mound yielded only Hellenistic remains; excavations on the southern slope also exposed the Middle Bronze Age glacis, to a depth of more than 20 m.

AREA A (1971). Area A, on the mound's eastern summit, revealed structures projecting above the surface that were identified as the remains of a Byzantine church (of which only the foundations had survived). Beneath the church were strata from the Iron Age.

AREA B (1971). Area B was opened near area A and the two were later combined. The purpose of the excavations here was to reexamine the stratigraphic sequence determined by the Nielson Expedition in 1936 and to expose the fortifications dated later than the Middle Bronze Age II.

AREA D (1979). In Area D, an attempt was made to ascertain the layout of the city toward the foot of the mound, near the point where the main access road presumably entered the city. The excavations in area D showed that the Iron Age buildings had been constructed on terraces down the slope, creating a kind of funnel toward the main access road. The Iron Age strata here were about 10m deeper than the parallel levels in area A, some 120m away. It is possible that the Iron Age residential quarter in this area overlay the city gate of the Middle Bronze Age.

AREA C (1979). Area C, on the "acropolis" on top of the western summit, underwent only a few trial soundings. These showed that the acropolis was merely the remains of a medieval building, probably associated with Saladin's headquarters during the siege of Acre in 1187. After the building was abandoned, the site was occupied by farmers, who worked the fertile land for about one hundred years. Beneath this settlement was the Hellenistic level, which was important not only for its brick buildings, but also for its deep refuse pits, rich in finds, which cut into the Iron Age strata. In this area, the Iron Age levels were buried more than 3 m deeper than the parallel levels on the eastern summit. It appears that throughout the Iron Age, and probably even earlier, the "upper city" was situated on the eastern summit; the western summit, on the other hand, was only built up in the Middle Ages, specifically, in the Ayyubid period. Area A, therefore, was probably the city's administrative center in the Iron Age, a theory supported by the discovery here of a broken tablet with a cuneiform inscription. In the Byzantine period, the highest point on the mount was still in the east, which is why the church was built there.

The absence of a rampart, in both areas D and B, may well be significant. One possible explanation may be that the Middle Bronze Age fortifications were repaired in the Iron Age but later collapsed. However, the Iron Age I buildings discovered in area B were built according to a clearly conceived plan. They were rebuilt time and again along a line that recedes, as it were, up the slope; thus, the steep proclivity was supported by the buildings erected on it, rather than by a rampart.

The Iron Age city does not seem to have been densely built; there were considerable gaps between the houses. The fills in these gaps-which included organic material, animal dung, and seeds-were indicative of enclosures for livestock and shepherds' shelters (remains were found of huts and stoves). The fills are, thus, evidence for the agricultural nature and relative sparsity of the Iron Age II occupation at Tell Keisan.

EARLY BRONZE AGE: STRATUM XVI (1935)

In the Early Bronze Age, the settlement at Keisan reached its greatest extent. A wall more than 5 m thick was discovered at the bottom of the trench; only the stone foundations survived. Its brick superstructure was destroyed by Middle Bronze Age builders. The line of the wall could be identified, particularly in the east, by tracing the elevated surface. The pottery associated with this fortification was dated to the Early Bronze Age II, and perhaps earlier. The floors associated with the fortification have yet to be exposed.

MIDDLE BRONZE AGE: STRATA XV-XIV (1935)

As in the rest of the country, the fortifications erected at Tell Keisan in the Middle Bronze Age reached enormous proportions. The entire mound was surrounded by a wall built halfway up the slope. Although the foundations were not exposed, they probably rested on bedrock, some 3 to 4 m higher here than in the surrounding plain. The wall was built of almost square stones (50 by 50 em). Its outer face was vertical, and its inner face inclined slightly. The wall was more than 5 m wide at its base and was preserved to a height of some 5 m. An earlier glacis, projecting outward some 21m, supported the stone wall. The glacis itself was reinforced at its foot by a revetment and sealed by a mixture of plaster and pebbles-a common technique in this country in the Middle Bronze Age II. The upper part of the glacis near the stone wall was about 2 m thick. A later glacis was also discovered, indicating that it had been rebuilt but using the same technique. Another revetment was built at the foot of this glacis, which extended its width to 25 m. This fortification system undoubtedly dates to the Middle Bronze Age II. The early stage of the glacis was sealed with a layer of fill containing material from the Middle Bronze Age I and a few sherds from the Early Bronze Age III-evidence of continuous occupation at the site.

LATE BRONZE AGE: STRATA XIII-XI (1935)

The Late Bronze Age strata were easily identified by the presence of imported Cypriot ware. However, the British expedition was unable to pinpoint the end of the Bronze Age at Tell Keisan, and their stratigraphic sequence for the Iron Age was therefore faulty. They were also unable (in 1935) to define the mound's Iron Age II strata (900 BCE and later), designating the whole of the Iron Age II as "Iron Age I" and defining the latter as "Late Bronze Age to Iron Age I."

TRANSITION PERIOD FROM THE BRONZE TO IRON AGES: STRATUM 13 (1980)

Although the transitional level from the Bronze to the Iron ages was only exposed over a limited area, it was easy to identify. A brick building, with partition walls built of large bricks, supported by vertical jambs, belongs to this stratum. One of the rooms contained a pottery assemblage buried under a thick layer of debris. The assemblage included a high collared-rim pithos; several storage jars with narrow, elongated bodies (in the tradition of Egyptian pottery) and four handles; a few barrel-shaped storage jars with rounded bases; three decorated jugs (one of which, of the white-painted III type, was wheel-made); one undecorated jug; a flask; and a Mycenean stirrup jar, typical of Mycenean IIIC ware. This jar is the only evidence thus far that Mycenean IIIC ware was imported to the eastern coast of the Mediterranean in this period. The destruction layer may be associated with the invasion of the Sea Peoples. Even before additional evidence emerged, the excavators had determined that this layer initiated the Iron Age at the site, as it was dated to approximately 1200 BCE. The stirrup jar mentioned above was also significant in connection with the Sea Peoples' invasion. It was examined by neutron activation analysis and found to originate most probably in Kouklia, Cyprus.

IRON AGE I: STRATA 12-9 (1980)

As stated above, stratum 13 was assigned to the beginning of the Iron Age. The Iron Age I levels at Keisan were exceptionally thick: their material had accumulated to a height of more than 3 m, and the stratigraphy was undisturbed. The site was probably reoccupied immediately after the destruction of stratum 13, and as a result the excavators found it difficult to associate floors and walls with the various strata. A notable feature is the appearance of the so-called Philistine sherds. Stratum 12 reflects the better conditions in the settlement, whose beginnings were rather poor, in terms of the improved quality of the construction. However, if the criteria are the size of buildings and the quality of construction, it was only in stratum 11 and later that a new era of prosperity set in. At this stage of exploration at Tell Keisan, it cannot be clearly established whether stratum 11 was destroyed or abandoned. It was, in any case, short-lived and should probably be dated to the last quarter of the twelfth century BCE. The end of the stratum, whether destroyed or abandoned, is to be associated with the population movements that affected the entire region in the second half of the twelfth century BCE. Arameans and Israelites were locked in a struggle with the Philistines for control of the area. It is highly significant that the next level, stratum 10, showed considerable foreign influence; the pottery exhibited a combination of Mycenean and Cypriot types, to the extent that it could be defined as Levanto-Mycenean IIIC ware. Nevertheless, petrographic analysis showed that the vessels were of local manufacture. Pyxides, imitation bilbil jugs, large flasks, juglets, and the like were the most common vessels in the assemblage. They were found with the Philistine ware.

This strong influence of foreign pottery attests to a highly developed local civilization that maintained long-term commercial contacts; it is also indicative of the prosperity of Acco port. The assemblage includes, inter alia, a large clay vat of a type known otherwise only from Cyprus (and in earlier strata at Tell Keisan). This container was used in manufacturing purple dye. The dyers broke the neck of the container to enlarge its aperture and fixed it firmly in the ground. Traces of fire around the container indicate that it had to be kept hot in order to conserve the heat of the dye. When discovered, the container still retained clearly visible traces of purple dye, which, however, faded after a few weeks. Chemical analysis confirmed that the traces were indeed of purple dye. The only structural remains from stratum 10 were brick walls that had collapsed in various places and been repaired. This explains the quick accumulation of the stratum.

Only in stratum 9 is there evidence of renewed construction of massive, well-planned buildings. The large stones from the walls in the first occupational phase in this stratum (9C) were probably taken from the Middle Bronze Age rampart. Throughout the existence of stratum 9-that is, for nearly a century-there were signs of prosperity and wealth. The excavators easily traced the development of the three occupational phases (C, B, and A) in the area at the top of the slope. The city plan was probably based on groups of rectangular dwelling units, each 6 by 10m (external dimensions). One such group, perpendicular to the line of the slope, is earlier than another group that was built alongside it. The latter may have been a facade, intended-in the absence of a wall-to protect the residents in case of invasion. The three occupational phases uncovered in building 501 revealed a history similar to that in stratum 9: in the earliest phase (9C) the outer walls were built of large, dressed stones, while the inner partition walls were built of bricks. The building seems to have had only two rooms. In the latest phase (9A) the eastern, larger room, formerly unroofed, was provided with a roof that rested on four wooden beams. The building then consisted of four units, but it cannot be defined as a "four-room house"; the rooms formed by the partition of the courtyard were too narrow for that. Stratum 9A was destroyed by fire. The brick-built superstructures of the outer walls collapsed, but the courses remained attached to one another. The reconstructed height of the walls (more than 2.5 m) may indicate that the building originally had two stories. The finds attest to a decline in material culture in the Early Iron Age. The Phoenician bichrome jugs all belong to phase 9B, and the Philistine sherds appear for the last time in the destruction level of phase 9A. A prominent example of this pottery is the jug with pinched body, found also at Tell el-Far'ah (South) and other sites.

The destruction of phase 9A should be dated to about 1000 BCE, although there is no concrete evidence to that effect. It is only a conjecture that the destruction occurred concurrently with that of Tell Abu Hawam IV, Hazor XI, Megiddo VIA, and Tell Qasile X; and the Bible does not provide any indication that the destruction should be attributed to King David. His military campaign to the north (2 Sam. 8:3-12) was aimed at Syria (Aram) and he did not march up the coast. The destruction of Keisan, like that of Tell Abu Hawam IV, was probably due to local events: the nearby grain fields had always been controlled by the inhabitants of the coastal region, and when newcomers began to covet the fertile land, a fierce struggle must have ensued. In addition, David was not the only ruler who defeated the Sea Peoples; the Phoenicians consolidated their domination of the sea and coast by enslaving the nations who came in from the sea and settled in areas under Tyrian control.

The direct contacts between Keisan and Cyprus over a period of more than a century indicate that the city's attention was turned toward the sea. According to Josephus (Against A pion I, 119), Hiram I, king ofTyre, suppressed a rebellion of the Iturean ancestors at the beginning of his reign; this nation lived between the Galilee and Lebanon, in the hills and along the coast near Tyre, and probably also at Tell Keisan.

IRON AGE II: STRATA 8-6 (1980)

The site was apparently reoccupied shortly after the destruction of stratum 9. The settlement was meager and the construction poor; in some houses the builders made use of the stratum 9 walls, which were still visible above ground. As a whole, the pattern was one of continuity, but the pottery presents evidence of an important development: at the end of the tenth century BCE, the characteristic features ofBronze Age ceramics almost completely disappeared. The pottery in strata 7 and 6 is confined almost exclusively to everyday vessels and a few sherds of black-on-red ware and "Samaria bowls". The exceptional stability of the settlement is noteworthy: it continued to develop for 250 years without expanding beyond the limits of the Iron Age I buildings. It is not clear when stratum 5 began (somewhere in the eighth century BCE), but judging from its buildings, the city was then on the brink of extinction.

IRON AGE III: STRATA 5-4 (1980)

Because of the poor state of preservation of the remains in strata 6 and 5, these strata cannot be distinguished with any precision. In stratum 5, however, a new type of pottery made a sudden appearance, testifying to a shift in sources of influence. Because this pottery betrays prominent Assyrian characteristics, it probably reflects Neo-Assyrian influence in the region. Stratum 5 is, thus, to be defined as a Neo-Assyrian level, parallel to the period just prior to the fall of Samaria (721 BCE), hence its importance. At this time an impressive renascence undoubtedly took place. The transition to stratum 4 did not involve any destruction. This stratum presented evidence of a new town plan, quite different from the traditions of the Bronze and Iron ages; the directions of the walls of houses were no longer determined by the topological features of the plateau.

Two occupational phases were identified in stratum 4, with what was probably a layer of destruction in between. The earlier phase (4B) showed a very prominent Assyrian influence-Assyrian goblets, Assyrian "palace ware" in beige and white, and seals decorated with ritual motifs, such as a crescent over a vertical staff and the god Marduk's stylus (in the excavation report, most of these finds were assigned to stratum 5). Although the foreign invaders did not quite reach the coast and the region as a whole remained free ("land of the Sidonians"), Keisan and its environs benefited from the economic development attendant on the Assyrian domination. Evidence of these conditions is provided by the successful pottery industry, which is clearly Phoenician but combined with Assyrian elements and motifs. The high bottles constitute an Assyrian shape, but their necks and omphalos bases are typically Phoenician, and the same is true of their decoration and burnishing.

Judging from the finds at Tell Keisan, the storage jars, which probably originated in the Phoenicians' far-ranging commerce, were common from the end of the eighth to the end of the seventh centuries BCE; they disappeared at the beginning of the sixth century BCE. There were several types of storage jars, but all had the same features: a pointed base, small handles (to permitthe jars to be tied together on board ship), and no neck (because of a new method of sealing jars with resin). These jars were probably mass-manufactured in series; they undoubtedly originated in the Levant, although they have also been found in tombs in Cyprus, Turkey, Tunisia, and Spain. At Keisan they were invariably found with flat-based, gray grinding bowls (mortaria) that were once attributed to the Persian period but should probably also be ascribed to the end of the Iron Age.

In the second phase of occupation in stratum 4 (4A), there is evidence of considerable Cypriot influence and large quantities of imported Aegean ware, from Rhodes and Ionia. These imports may attest to a decline of Assyrian imperial domination in the region; however, the same effect could be attributed to a spread of Neo-Assyrian domination to Cyprus.

Another group assigned to phase 4A are the basket-handled amphorae. This group is common in Cyprus, particularly in the royal tombs at Salamis. They were also exported, but it is nevertheless surprising that at least one amphora of this type was found in each house at Keisan. Examination by neutron activation analysis and petrographic analysis showed that the amphorae had been manufactured in eastern Cyprus. In other words, the dating of this stratum is dependent on Cypriot stratigraphy and chronology (the higher chronology is preferable). Thus, the end of stratum 5 at Tell Keisan probably occurred around 700 BCE, whereas stratum 4extended over most of the seventh century BCE (the excavation report gave the date as around 650 BCE). The renascence came to an end in a conflagration. The destruction is probably to be associated with a punitive expedition mentioned in the annals of Ashurbanipal - the same expedition that destroyed Acco in 643 BCE.

LATE PERIODS: STRATA 3-1 (1980)

Tell Keisan was occupied throughout the Persian and Hellenistic periods, during which permanent ties were established with the archaic and classical Greek world and the Hellenistic world in general. Evidence of these ties is provided by sherds of Ionic and Attic ware and, later, by stamped handles of Rhodian and Ionian wine amphorae.

It is not clear why the site was abandoned before the end of the second century BCE (some scholars cite the possible effect ofSimon the Hasmonean's expedition to western Galilee in 163 BCE). The site remained unpopulated for five hundred years, until a small Christian village was established here, with a church in the center. It seems that this village was abandoned in the seventh century.

Cline (2011)

Conclusions

Unlike the situation at Aphek, Lachish, and numerous other cities (Nur and Cline 2000: 60), there is not a single piece of evidence, either direct or circumstantial, that suggests the destruction of Megiddo VIA was caused by human invaders, whether it be David, Shoshenq/Shishak, Israelites, Philistines, or others. Not a single arrowhead, spearhead, or other implement of war has been discovered in or even near any of the numerous skeletal remains found in this stratum, regardless of whether the bodies were located outside in the open or inside the buildings.

In contrast, there is a wide variety of circumstantial, but diagnostic, evidence that strongly suggests that the destruction of Megiddo Stratum VIA was caused by a devastating earthquake: vertical cracks noted in some of the mudbrick walls that remained standing; walls leaning at odd angles from their original position; and fierce burning and destruction across much of the site, not just in a random building here or there. There are also crushed skeletal remains—not simply skeletal remains, but crushed and unretrieved skeletal remains—found within the destroyed buildings. These are, it should be noted again, the remains of people who could easily have left those buildings in the event of invaders breaching the city walls, but who are less likely to have been able to escape in the event of a sudden earthquake striking without warning. Not one shows evidence of a violent death at the hands of invaders wielding weapons. Additional possible evidence from a variety of other sites with destructions which might be dated to this same time period, including Yoqneʿam XVII, Beth Shean Upper VI, Reḥov VII, Kinrot V, Hadar IV, Dan IVB, Dor G-7, Keisan 9a, Qasile X, and Rekhesh, may provide additional support for the idea that the hypothesized earthquake would have affected a much wider area than simply the Jezreel Valley (Kempinski 1989: 89–90; Stewart 1993: 30–36; Nur and Ron 2000: 51; Arie 2006: 227–31; Finkelstein et al. 2006: 850; Nur and Burgess 2008: 146–49; see also Table at http://www.kinneret-excavations.org/tel_kinrot.html).

It is also worth reiterating that it is not necessary to have modern utilities present or to be obliged to envision “warriors of the conquering force walk[ing] systematically from house to house carrying burning torches and setting fire to everything that could be burned” (Finkelstein et al. 2006: 850) in order for a fire to destroy a city in its entirety. As we have seen, there are numerous examples of devastating fires caused by earthquakes in premodern cities which did not have gas, electricity, or other modern utilities, including Lisbon in 1755, Basel in 1356, Antioch in 526, Jerusalem in 363, Nicomedia in 358, and 12 cities along the Gediz River in Turkey in 17 C.E. None of these show any evidence of a systematic torching of the city by a conquering force of warriors, but all were completely, or nearly completely, devastated by fires following an earthquake.

Moreover, the facts that some of the bodies in Megiddo Stratum VIA were buried (i.e., to the extent of having pottery sherds placed over them) and that there was some post-depositional activity in Area K soon after the catastrophe occurred, indicate that someone—perhaps a few of the survivors—did return to the settlement immediately after the destruction (contra Finkelstein et al. 2006: 850). Although the city was apparently not resettled or even rebuilt right away, this does not necessarily mean that all the inhabitants of Megiddo had been killed or enslaved and exiled, as was the case at Lachish Level III for instance, but may simply indicate that their confidence, as well as homes and properties, had been severely shaken, which is why it may have taken new people arriving in the area to eventually resettle the site and rebuild the city. It may also be the case that the earthquake affected a far larger area than just Megiddo, as mentioned above, and that a larger portion of Canaanite society as a whole was affected, perhaps even to the extent that one might speculate that the Israelites were able to take advantage of the natural catastrophe and incorporate it into their efforts to put an end to Canaanite rule in the region.

In sum, although it is not clear when the destruction of Megiddo VIA actually took place—for the current ongoing chronological debate is far from being resolved—that does not change the fact that the data indicate the devastation is much more likely to have been caused by an earthquake than by human invaders. There was certainly a whole lotta shakin’ going on at the end of Megiddo VIA, but it wasn’t because David, Shoshenq/Shishak, or any other warriors were celebrating a great military victory. More likely it was because Mother Nature was exerting her presence in the region once again, by sending a city-destroying earthquake, as she has done so many times over the centuries in this volatile, seismically active area of the world.

Raphael and Agnon

Period Age Site Damage Description
Iron IIA 1000-900 BCE Tell Keisan destruction of domestic building c. 1000 BCE (Phase 9A), with severe fire and outer brick walls collapsed while courses remained attached to one another (Humbert 1993: 865-6; Cline 2011: 67).

Seismic Effects
Phase 9A earthquake (?) - Iron I - ~1000 BCE

Effect Location Image(s) Description
  • Wall Collapse            
  • Roof Collapse (indicating displaced walls)
  • Fallen objects
  • Crushed Pottery
  • Fire
 Area B
Tell Keisan: map of the mound and excavation areas.

Stern et al. (1993 v. 3)
Fig. 51

Plan of Structures of Level 9A (Area B)

Briend and Humbert (1980)
Fig. 52

Axonometric view of Level 9a (Area B), and distribution of ceramics. N.B.: The numbering of the objects is that of the plates, or failing that, the inv. no..

Briend and Humbert (1980)
Fig. 7

Axonometric view of the "House of 11th"

Briend and Humbert (1980)
Fig. 6
Fig. 6

Section of Destruction Layer 5281 (Level 9A)

Briend and Humbert (1980)
Plate 120a
Plate 120a

The destruction layer sealing Locus 501(Level 9a)

Briend and Humbert (1980)
Plate 120d
Plate 120d

Section of the destruction layer (see fig. 6)

Briend and Humbert (1980)
Plate 120b
Plate 120b

The brick wall layer before removal

Briend and Humbert (1980)
Plate 120c
Plate 120c

The brick wall layer: plan view.

Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Stratum 9A was destroyed by fire. The brick-built superstructures of the outer walls collapsed, but the courses remained attached to one another. The reconstructed height of the walls (more than 2.5 m) may indicate that the building originally had two stories - Humbert in Stern et. al. (1993 v. 3:866)

  • Level 9a is covered by layer 5281, sometimes more than a metre thick, which bears witness to violent destruction (fig. 6): it is largely made up of the remains of raw bricks from collapsed walls. Despite slight damage due to level 8, this layer has been remarkably preserved on Locus 501 (fig. 52): the large bricks of a collapsed wall lay on edge, still assembled in courses (see fig. 6, locus 5281); these bricks, unequally fired by the fire11, often had a beautiful red, yellow or brown tint, isolated by grey-brown joints.

    Examination of the section allows us to reconstruct the process of destruction. The best-preserved brick courses of the collapsed wall are near wall 5222, and not partition 5253 (see fig. 6), on the side of which the bricks are dispersed by centrifugal force, and damaged by the impact on the ground12. Furthermore, this collapsed wall has a vault shape and rests on a first collapse: during the destruction, the roof first collapsed, then the upper part of the raw bricks of wall 5222 fell, dragged by the roof towards the north, inside the house.

    We can in fact discern four successive layers under the fallen wall:

    • immediately under the bricks, adobe slabs from the wall's rendering over two or three cm
    • under the rammed earth, a layer of powdery white ash, 10 cm thick, from consumed plant materials
    • under the ash, a layer of 10 to 20 cm of granular brick earth, reddened by the fire, and containing the remains of a frame of wooden beams
    • on the stone floor, a thick layer of black ash

    These elements can be interpreted simply:
    • the black ash comes from the furniture of the room
    • the wooden frame and the brick earth come from the roof, stricto sensu
    • the plant ash is residual from the materials stored on the terrace: kindling, straw, harvest ... This explanation is reinforced by the presence of a jar taken from this ash: located on the roof of the house, it probably contained a product protected from theft and rodents.

     - Briend and Humbert (1980:22-23)

  • Locus 501 [in Area B] represents the master bedroom of the house and the material found there confirms this. A whole list of objects is noted: in the corner formed by walls 5222 and 5237 an amphorae (pl. 57: 3), a scoop (pl. 65: 15) and a jar (5.552 ND) were collected, the stopper of which was found (5.358). A jug (pl. 61: 3) containing a tiny scarab (pl. 88: 11) was found intact, having slipped on the first layer of destruction. It is therefore possible that these objects were found in a niche in wall 5222 and that they fell during the destruction of this wall. Further west in the same Locus, another stopper of a vase made of raw clay (5.120) smaller than the one mentioned above and a painted jar (pl. 57:8) were discovered in the corner of walls 6076 and 5222. - Briend and Humbert (1980:197-202)

  • To the west of Locus 635, Locus 610 appears as a square surrounded on its sides by a small, fairly low brick wall. Inside, the remains of 16 completely crushed jars were discovered (cf. pl. 58: 1, 3; 59: la-4; 60: 1). At this point, the fire must have been particularly intense and smoldered for a long time. The paste of some jars was refired, causing blisters and deformations due to the heat; the color of the ceramic changed, becoming gray. Some jars were completely deformed, making reassembly impossible; this phenomenon can be explained by the combined action of the fire and the pressure exerted by the destruction layer on more or less full jars. It is possible that Locus 610 was filled with plant material that left a 25 cm thickness of gray and yellow ash at the bottom of the Locus. Such material provided fuel for the fire and would explain the very high heat released. - Briend and Humbert (1980:197-202)

  • JW: Plates 120b and 120c also show the Phase 9a destruction layer in Locus 501 (even though the authors did not note this in the captions)

Deformation Maps
Phase 9A earthquake (?) - Iron I - ~1000 BCE

Deformation Map

Modified by JW from Fig. 52 from Briend and Humbert (1980)

Intensity Estimates
Phase 9A earthquake (?) - Iron I - ~1000 BCE

Effect Location Image(s) Description Intensity
  • Wall Collapse            
  • Roof Collapse (indicating displaced walls)
  • Fallen objects
  • Crushed Pottery
  • Fire
 Area B
Tell Keisan: map of the mound and excavation areas.

Stern et al. (1993 v. 3)
Fig. 51

Plan of Structures of Level 9A (Area B)

Briend and Humbert (1980)
Fig. 52

Axonometric view of Level 9a (Area B), and distribution of ceramics. N.B.: The numbering of the objects is that of the plates, or failing that, the inv. no..

Briend and Humbert (1980)
Fig. 7

Axonometric view of the "House of 11th"

Briend and Humbert (1980)
Fig. 6
Fig. 6

Section of Destruction Layer 5281 (Level 9A)

Briend and Humbert (1980)
Plate 120a
Plate 120a

The destruction layer sealing Locus 501(Level 9a)

Briend and Humbert (1980)
Plate 120d
Plate 120d

Section of the destruction layer (see fig. 6)

Briend and Humbert (1980)
Plate 120b
Plate 120b

The brick wall layer before removal

Briend and Humbert (1980)
Plate 120c
Plate 120c

The brick wall layer: plan view.

Briend and Humbert (1980)
  • Stratum 9A was destroyed by fire. The brick-built superstructures of the outer walls collapsed, but the courses remained attached to one another. The reconstructed height of the walls (more than 2.5 m) may indicate that the building originally had two stories - Humbert in Stern et. al. (1993 v. 3:866)

  • Level 9a is covered by layer 5281, sometimes more than a metre thick, which bears witness to violent destruction (fig. 6): it is largely made up of the remains of raw bricks from collapsed walls. Despite slight damage due to level 8, this layer has been remarkably preserved on Locus 501 (fig. 52): the large bricks of a collapsed wall lay on edge, still assembled in courses (see fig. 6, locus 5281); these bricks, unequally fired by the fire11, often had a beautiful red, yellow or brown tint, isolated by grey-brown joints.

    Examination of the section allows us to reconstruct the process of destruction. The best-preserved brick courses of the collapsed wall are near wall 5222, and not partition 5253 (see fig. 6), on the side of which the bricks are dispersed by centrifugal force, and damaged by the impact on the ground12. Furthermore, this collapsed wall has a vault shape and rests on a first collapse: during the destruction, the roof first collapsed, then the upper part of the raw bricks of wall 5222 fell, dragged by the roof towards the north, inside the house.

    We can in fact discern four successive layers under the fallen wall:

    • immediately under the bricks, adobe slabs from the wall's rendering over two or three cm
    • under the rammed earth, a layer of powdery white ash, 10 cm thick, from consumed plant materials
    • under the ash, a layer of 10 to 20 cm of granular brick earth, reddened by the fire, and containing the remains of a frame of wooden beams
    • on the stone floor, a thick layer of black ash

    These elements can be interpreted simply:
    • the black ash comes from the furniture of the room
    • the wooden frame and the brick earth come from the roof, stricto sensu
    • the plant ash is residual from the materials stored on the terrace: kindling, straw, harvest ... This explanation is reinforced by the presence of a jar taken from this ash: located on the roof of the house, it probably contained a product protected from theft and rodents.

     - Briend and Humbert (1980:22-23)

  • Locus 501 [in Area B] represents the master bedroom of the house and the material found there confirms this. A whole list of objects is noted: in the corner formed by walls 5222 and 5237 an amphorae (pl. 57: 3), a scoop (pl. 65: 15) and a jar (5.552 ND) were collected, the stopper of which was found (5.358). A jug (pl. 61: 3) containing a tiny scarab (pl. 88: 11) was found intact, having slipped on the first layer of destruction. It is therefore possible that these objects were found in a niche in wall 5222 and that they fell during the destruction of this wall. Further west in the same Locus, another stopper of a vase made of raw clay (5.120) smaller than the one mentioned above and a painted jar (pl. 57:8) were discovered in the corner of walls 6076 and 5222. - Briend and Humbert (1980:197-202)

  • To the west of Locus 635, Locus 610 appears as a square surrounded on its sides by a small, fairly low brick wall. Inside, the remains of 16 completely crushed jars were discovered (cf. pl. 58: 1, 3; 59: la-4; 60: 1). At this point, the fire must have been particularly intense and smoldered for a long time. The paste of some jars was refired, causing blisters and deformations due to the heat; the color of the ceramic changed, becoming gray. Some jars were completely deformed, making reassembly impossible; this phenomenon can be explained by the combined action of the fire and the pressure exerted by the destruction layer on more or less full jars. It is possible that Locus 610 was filled with plant material that left a 25 cm thickness of gray and yellow ash at the bottom of the Locus. Such material provided fuel for the fire and would explain the very high heat released. - Briend and Humbert (1980:197-202)

  • JW: Plates 120b and 120c also show the Phase 9a destruction layer in Locus 501 (even though the authors did not note this in the captions)
  • VIII+
  • VII+
  • VII+
  • VII+
  • ?
The archeoseismic evidence requires a minimum Intensity of VIII (8) when using the Earthquake Archeological Effects chart of Rodríguez-Pascua et al (2013: 221-224). There may be a construction related site effect as mud brick walls were built above a stone base.

Notes and Further Reading
References

Articles and Books

Abu Raya, Rafeh and Porat, Leea (2010) Tel Kison Final report, Hadashot Arkheologiyot v. 122

Cline, E. H. (2011) Whole lotta shakin’ going on: the possible destruction by earthquake of stratum VIA at Megiddo . In I. Finkelstein and N. Na’aman (eds.), The Fire Signals of Lachish: Studies in the Archaeology and History of Israel in the Late Bronze Age, Iron Age and Persian Period in Honor of David Ussishkin, 55-70. Winona Lake, Indiana: Eisenbrauns. - academia.edu

Feig, Nurit (2008) Tel Kison, Hadashot Arkheologiyot v. 120

Feig, Nurit (2012) Tel Kison Final Report, Hadashot Arkheologiyot v. 124

Tepper, Y. (2007) Tel Kison (North) Final Report, Hadashot Arkheologiyot v. 119

Excavation Reports

Briend, J. and Humbert, J.B. (1980) Tell Keisan ( 1971-1976): Une Cite Phenicienne en Galilee (Orbis Biblicus et Orientalis, Series Archaeologica 1), Fribourg 1980. - open access at University of Zurich

Briend, J. and Humbert, J.B. (1980) Tell Keisan ( 1971-1976): Une Cite Phenicienne en Galilee (Orbis Biblicus et Orientalis, Series Archaeologica 1), Fribourg 1980. - academia.edu

Websites

Tell Keisan Excavations Website - University of Chicago

IAA Archives for Tell Keisan

Tel Kisson at BibleWalks.com

Tell Keisan at Biblical-Archaeology.org - includes 3D image of Tell Keisan and a timeline

Tell Keisan at openbible.info

References from Stern et al. (1993 v.3)

Main Publications

Briend, J. and Humbert, J.B. (1980) Tell Keisan ( 1971-1976): Une Cite Phenicienne en Galilee (Orbis Biblicus et Orientalis, Series Archaeologica 1), Fribourg 1980. - open access at academia.edu

Other Studies

Abel, GP 2, 237

A. Rowe et al., QDAP 5 (1936), 207-209

J. Briend, National Geographic Society Reports 12 (1971), 129-143

id., IEJ 25 (1975), 258-260

id., 4th Archaeological Conference in Israel, Jerusalem 1976, 25

id., BTS 181 (1976), 14-17

Briend-Humbert (Review), AJA 85 (1981), 499- 500;P. Prignaud, IEJ22 (1972), 177-178, 249

23 (1973), 259

id. et al., RB79 (1972), 227-274

83 (1976), 88-91

84 (1977), 409-412

86 (1979), 444-449

A. Spycket, ibid. 80 (1973), 384-395

W. Fulco, RB 82 (1975), 234-239

J. Balensi, ibid. 88 (1981), 399-401

id., lith Archaeological Conference in Israel, Jerusalem 1985, 23

J.-B. Humbert, RB 88 (1981), 373-398

98 (1991), 574-590

id., IEJ32 (1982), 61-64; id., Archeologie, Art et Histoire de Ia Palestine: Colloque du Centenaire de fa Section des Sciences Religieuses, Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, Sept. 1986 (ed. E.-M. Laperrousaz), Paris 1988, 65-83; R. M. Sigrist, ibid., 32-35

MdB36(1984), 30-3l;J.-F. Salles, Levant 17 (1985), 203-204

S. Hellwing, TA 15-16 (1988-1989), 212-220

0. Keel, Studien zu den Stempelsiegeln aus Paliistinajisrael3 (Orbis Biblicus et Orientalis I 00), Freiburg 1990, 163-260, 322-330

J. Gunneweg and I. Perlman, RB 98 (1991 ), 591-599.

References from Stern et al. (2008)

J. Balensi, MdB 75 (1992), 30–33

J. -B. Humbert, ABD, 4, New York 1992, 14–16

J. Gunneweg & I. Perlman, RB 101 (1994), 559–561

A. Mazar, Cyprus in the 11th Century B.C. Proceedings of the International Symposium. (ed. V. Karageorghis), Nicosia 1994, 39–57

S. Sabbadini, L’Area del regno d’Israele durante le dominazioni assiria e babilonese (721–586 a.C.) (Ph.D. diss.), Roma 1994

B. Blakeburn, BASOR 298 (1995), 75

W. G. Dever, OEANE, 3, New York 1997, 278–279

E. Stern, Michmanim 11 (1997), 65*–66*; id., Ki Baruch hu: Ancient Near Eastern, Biblical and Judaic Studies (B. A. Levine Fest.

eds. R. Chazan et al.), Winona Lake, IN 1999, 635

M. Rossi, Contributi e materiali di archeologia orientale 7 (1997), 523–559

Z. Gal, Cathedra 88 (1998), 181

J. Sapin, Transeuphratène 16 (1998), 87–120

S. Wolff, Mediterranean Peoples in Transition, Jerusalem 1998, 449–454

J. Elayi & H. Sayegh, Port, Paris 1998–2000

T. J. Barako, AJA 104 (2000), 513–530

M. Bietak & K. Kopetzky, Synchronisation, Wien 2000, 113–114

G. Markoe, Phoenicians (Peoples of the Past), London 2000, 194–195

J. Mlynarczyik, ASOR Newsletter 50/1 (2000), 12

50/3 (2000), 17–18

id., Études et Travaux 19 (2001), 237–262

id., Ceramiques hellenistiques et romaines: productions et diffusion en Méditerranéen orientale (Cypre, Égypte et cote Syro-Palestinienne) (Travaux de la maison de l’Orient Mediterraneen 35

eds. F. Blonde et al.), Lyon 2002, 117–132

M. Peilstöcker, ICAANE, 1, Roma 2000, 1336

A. Gilboa, Southern Phoenicia during Iron Age I–IIA in the Light of the Tel Dor Excavations: The Evidence of Pottery, 1–2 (Ph.D. diss.), Jerusalem 2001

id. (& I. Sharon), BASOR 332 (2003), 7–80

J. E. Landgraf, BAIAS 19–20 (2001–2002), 29–37

C. Aznar, 28th Archaeological Conference in Israel, Jerusalem, 24–25.3.2002 (Abstracts of the Lectures), Jerusalem 2002, 5

A. YasurLandau, Social Aspects of Aegean Settlement in the Southern Levant in the End of the 2nd Millennium BCE (Ph.D. diss.), Tel Aviv 2002

I. Finkelstein, Symbiosis, Symbolism and the Power of the Past, Winona Lake, IN 2003, 75–83

Y. Goren et al., Inscribed in Clay, Tel Aviv 2004, 232–233

E. Boaretto et al., Radiocarbon 47 (2005), 39–55.

Wikipedia pages

Tell Keisan



Via Maris



Achshaph



Cabul