Promoted excavation sites

Special excavations deserve a special attention. This page promotes some of the exciting, active archaeological sites.

Care for a dig?

Home > Info > Archaeology > Promoted excavation sites

Contents:
Purpose
Tel Nissa
Links

Purpose:

This web page selects outstanding excavation projects which BibleWalks is promoting. In these projects we are closely following up the digs, bringing new information and exclusive reports, and in contact with their directors.

(1) Tel Nissa

Tel Nissa (Tell el-Manshiya) is an artificial mound east of the city of Beit She’an, in the Jordan valley region. Its peak, 150m long and 75m wide, towers 15m above a spring that flows to the Jordan river. On the hill is a multi-period Canaanite/Israelite city: starting from the Early Bronze Age I (3500-2900 BC), continuing thru the Late Bronze period (1550-1200 BC), and ending in the Iron Age I and II (1200-1000, 1000-586 BC).

Click on the photos to view in higher resolution…

The excavation is headed by the distinguished archaeologists Professor Emeritus Amihai Mazar (Hebrew University), Dr. Yoav Vaknin (Tel Aviv University) and Archaeologist Ayelet Goldberg -Keidar (Hebrew University). This project was initiated by BibleWalks Jordan Valley Archaeological Survey project.

Prof. Mazar is one of the most senior experts on Biblical Archaeology, and among his major projects are the Beth Shean Valley Archaeological Project and the excavation and publications of Tel Beit Shean and Tel Rechov.

Doctor Yoav Vaknin specializes on archaeomagnetic dating of mud bricks, a new technology that will help to determine the destruction time of the site. This technique measures the direction of the earth’s magnetic field recorded in a burnt sun dried mud brick and compares it to the historic magnetic field variations.

During the initial phase of ceramics survey, the pottery dating analysis team examined the collected findings within each polygon, in order to create a ‘heat map’ of the various periods of the mound. Around the table, from left to right: Dr. Nava Panitz-Cohen (Hebrew University, director of Abel Beth Maacah excavations); a young volunteer; Dr. Yoav Vaknin; Ayelet Goldberg -Keidar and Prof. Amihai Mazar. Both Nava and Amihai have dozens of years experience in pottery classification and dating.

The ceramic survey was conducted in November 2023 and the first excavation season was conducted on April 2024. Three 5x5m squares were opened on the south side of the summit. The team of volunteers and archaeologists have removed the top soil within the squares and continuing to dig into the ground in order to search and identify the ancient objects. Next season is planned for October/November time frame.

Updated Apr 28, 2024

Care for a dig?

Purpose:

(1) Tel Nissa

Links:

BibleWalks.com – walk with us through the sites of the Holy Land