Fourth season 2015 – week 4

Alla cleaning the plastered installation (Early Chalcolithic)

The last week of excavation was marked by completing tasks and answering questions which remained open. We found the continuation of the southern wall uncovered in week 3, which has been preserved to at least 7 m length and can be securely dated to the Early Chalcolithic period. However, the connection to the second wall running north south remains unknown and will be clarified in the next season. The floor levels north of this wall have been fully excavated and sifted, yielding a very rich Wadi Rabah ceramic assemblage (including yet unknown vessel shapes), as well as arrowheads, beads and obsidian. In the northern part of the excavation, an Early Bronze Age rectangular silo paved with stone slabs has been excavated and contained a storage jar in situ.

Gaya, Lynda and Alex cleaning for the final picture

In the second half of the week we were hit by the dust storm which covered the entire Middle East. While the conditions were a real burden for the team preparing the squares for the final photography, the weather was great for pictures, creating a soft and indirect light.

We can look back at a very fruitful four week excavation season. The great contribution was the discovery of very substantial architecture dating to the Early Chalcolithic period with walls up to 70 cm wide, abutted by floors levels with complete vessels in situ as well as a plastered installation. Two phases can be possibly distinguished, yet their stratigraphic relation has to be confirmed in the next season. Little is known about the architecture of this period, and this project adds to recent finds which point to substantial architecture. While the full range of classic Wadi Rabah ceramics has been uncovered, new, previously unknown ceramic shapes have been found as well. Small finds include obsidian, imported ceramics, worked pottery disks, beads, flint sickle blades, scrapers and arrowheads as well as biconic sling stones.

A Pottery Neolithic arrow head found in the Early Chalcolithic stratum

With the discovery of architectural remains in association with undisturbed Early Chalcolithic strata, the main aim of this project has been achieved. The coming season will allow to expand the excavation area and clarify stratigraphic questions which remained open.

Fourth season 2015 – week 3

Becky and Alex excavating the Wadi Rabah bowl turned upside down

In the third week of excavation we continued to uncover architectural remains dating to the Early Chalcolithic period. Inside a partially preserved room a complete carinated bowl and a ringstand were discovered in situ and were subsequently carefully excavated and documented. Outside of this structure, a plastered installation might indicate domestic activities such as food preparation. Small finds include flint tools such as sickle blades, arrowheads and bifaces, as well as classic Wadi Rabah pottery, sling stones and obsidian.

A cache of stone balls dating to the Early Bronze Age

In the northern part of the excavation area, we continued to uncover the wall remains dating to the Early Bronze Age I. A rectangular installation build of stone slabs contained a storage jar and a cache of stone balls (sling- or hammerstones?) were uncovered in situ adjacent to the wall.

The last week of excavation will be dedicated to further clarifying stratigraphic relations by removing bulks and to excavate below the floor levels of the Wadi Rabah structures.

Open Day 8th September 2015

We would like to invite you to visit us in the field in the last week of excavation on Tuesday, 8^th September 2015. We work from 5:30 to 12:30 in the field. You can find us up in the hills southeast of Tell Abu Zureiq. For directions, see: https://goo.gl/maps/Ze31b or call 054-9280227. In the afternoon you can find us in our office in Kibbutz Hazorea from 2:30 to 5:30. Our office is located right in the center of the Kibbutz, after you enter the Kibbutz, take the second exit at the first roundabout, make a left and continue to the tall grey concrete tower, where you will find us at pottery reading and working in the office (https://goo.gl/maps/DlGqH).

If you can’t make it to our open day, you are more than welcome to visit us any other time, a call in advance would be appreciated.

Fourth season 2015 – week 2

Uncovering a wall in Area G

Week two of the fourth season at Ein el-Jarba is finished and we are about to start into our third week tomorrow. After part of a structure that probably dates to the Wadi Rabah period was successfully unearthed already during the first week, we decided to expand the current excavation area by three additional 5 on 5 m squares to explore the surroundings of this exceptional find. These additional 75 m2 will help us to understand the stratigraphy, setting and hopefully the meaning of the structure.

Marina Bekker taking heights

During the past week we concentrated our work in these new squares and were able to document a part of an Early Bronze Age I building, together with a floor level and considerable quantities of pottery in situ. Additional finds include sickle-blades, flint-tools, obsidian and sling stones.

Fourth season 2015 – week 1

Marina (right) and Liz discussing the registration method

We started the fourth season at Ein el-Jarba on the 16^th of August with an ambitious group of about 15 international and Israeli volunteers as well as our devoted staff, which has worked on this project since the beginning.

Despite a heat wave and the initial organization to set up the excavation and our home base at Kibbutz Hazorea, the first week proved to be highly promising. Our new accommodation in Hazorea marks a significant improvement and the swimming pool of the Kibbutz has been highly appreciated by the entire team.

We decided to continue work at Area G, which has been opened in 2014. Part of the team continued to work in the old squares and after only a few days we unearthed structures that probably belong to the Early Chalcolithic. Additionally, part of an Early Bronze Age structure has been uncovered. These preliminary results set the direction for the expansion of the excavation area.

Liz cleaning architectural features from the Early Chalcolithic period

The first week yielded finds dating to the Pottery Neolithic (arrowheads and pottery), the Early Chalcolithic (classic Wadi Rabah assemblage consisting of burnished ware, sickle blades, sling stones, and obsidian), the Early Bronze Age I (pottery, Canaanite blades) and the Hellenistic period.

Based on the results from the first week, we aim to open new squares in the second week, allowing for their complete excavation until the end of the season.

Application process for the 4th season at Ein el-Jarba started

The application process for the fourth season of excavation this summer has started. The excavation will take place between 15. Aug – 11. Sep 2015.

Further details and application forms:

https://eineljarba.wordpress.com/excavation/fourth-season-2015/

Thank you all!

Dear Ein el-Jarba Team,

I do not want to miss the opportunity to thank you for the third, successful season at Ein el-Jarba. Most importantly, we all returned safely from the excavation. Archaeologically, the season exceeded my expectations, combining both a survey of 15  500 m² and the excavation of nearly 200 m².

Group photo first half

I would particularly like to thank the staff of the project, Marina Bekker, Hadas Misgav, Alla Rabinovich, Ayellet Segal, Yona Silverman, Noga Zelonagura, Shahar Zur, Arieh Ulman and Hananel Shapira. Your dedication and hard work is exceptional. I am lucky to have found a group of such strong and talented personalities and to see you grow both individually and as a group from season to season.

Further, I would like to thank my volunteers. Ein el-Jarba is in many aspects more demanding than other projects, and you have mastered both the archaeological as well as the logistic challenges. You were very disciplined and worked exceptionally hard. I hope we succeeded in including you in as many processes of the excavation as possible and you returned home with more experience and confidence in the field. Needless to say, that I would be delighted to welcome you back next year.

Group photo second half

Lastly, I would like to thank Kibbutz Daliyah and Kibbutz Hazorea. Their support in accommodation (Daliyah) as well as logistics and organization (Hazorea) are essential to our archaeological work.

I wish you all a great academic year, successful studies and hope to see you back at the fourth season in 2015!

Katharina Streit

Third season extended

Alla exposing the complete jug next to the standing stone

After finally uncovering exciting finds (obviously on the last day) we decided to extend the third excavation season at Ein el-Jarba by another week.

The intact base of a Wadi Rabah chalice (?)

A PPN floor, an MB II installation and architectural remains with a connected Wadi Rabah surface demand careful excavation and thus more time. Intact Wadi Rabah vessels on a floor, abutting a stone wall finally indicate the origin of the rich find assemblage of ceramics, obsidian and flint.

obsidian blade

A 3 cm long complete obsidian blade which was uncovered in the sifter today forbids to leave the site at this stage and shows how essential sifting of the entire sediment is.

Proto-urban legends: the last week

Staff and volunteers forming a human shadecloth

Our last week is about to begin. In the last weeks, we uncovered a building from the Persian/Hellenistic period. Luckily these later structures do not seem to have disturbed the earlier Wadi Rabah layer below. The Wadi Rabah stratum yielded a rich ceramic assemblage, characteristic flint tools, sling stones and obsidian on floor surfaces, but the architecture still seems elusive. This last week, we will try to solve a few open questions.

Section drawings in process

A Wadi Rabah floor pavement?

Last week we uncovered a pavement oflarge flat stones. The quality of the construction and its regularity immediately suggested a later, Persian or Hellenistic date. However, reading the pottery baskets of the finds just above the pavement was rather surprising. The material was nearly exclusively Wadi Rabah. This week, the dismantling of the pavement will bring the final answer as to the date of the structure.

A standing stone

A standing stone?

Adjacent to a Wadi Rabah surface, a flat stone protruding vertically from the ground has been uncovered. After 10-20 cm the stone still continued and it becomes apparent that this seems to be a more substantial installation (for lack of a better term) than previously expected. The question lies (as always) in the bulk.

Other essential documentation works will include the sections drawings and photographs. An overactive rodent has turned some of the sections into a Swiss cheese, which makes their interpretation even more difficult. Doubtlessly the last week will be busy, but hopefully will help to solve some of this year’s questions to the site.

On Tuesday we invite you to visit us on our Open Day in the field and the office! 

“What are archaeologists searching for?” “Oil”

Pottery washing

In the course of our excavation season, we welcomed children of the Hazorea primary school to join us in pottery washing and find analysis in the afternoon. Questions concerning what archaeologists are looking for in the ground were answered creatively with “oil” by one of the young participants.

Find sorting

After learning how to identify bone (no, no dinosaur bones), pottery and flint stone, they sorted and counted finds from the last days. After a short explanation of the colour and density of ceramics from different periods, the primary school kids were able to distinguish Wadi Rabah and Byzantine pottery and to date them relatively. Archaeological talents were clearly at work! We hope to have given a hands-on experience for the young generation on the material culture of their very rich local history.