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Investigating the Ancient Past ARCHAEOLOGY AT KHIRBET EL-RAI Photo of Khirbet el-Rai, 2019 Winter Season, Khirbet el-Rai Facebook Page

Investigating the Ancient Past - MQ...Investigating the Past at Khirbet el- Rai Khirbet el-Ra‘i(pronounced ‘el’ ‘r-eye’) is an archaeological site in Southern Israel. It

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Page 1: Investigating the Ancient Past - MQ...Investigating the Past at Khirbet el- Rai Khirbet el-Ra‘i(pronounced ‘el’ ‘r-eye’) is an archaeological site in Southern Israel. It

Investigating the Ancient Past

ARCHAEOLOGY AT KHIRBET EL-RAI

Photo of Khirbet el-Rai, 2019 Winter Season, Khirbet el-Rai Facebook Page

Page 2: Investigating the Ancient Past - MQ...Investigating the Past at Khirbet el- Rai Khirbet el-Ra‘i(pronounced ‘el’ ‘r-eye’) is an archaeological site in Southern Israel. It
Page 3: Investigating the Ancient Past - MQ...Investigating the Past at Khirbet el- Rai Khirbet el-Ra‘i(pronounced ‘el’ ‘r-eye’) is an archaeological site in Southern Israel. It

3

Map retrieved

from Wikipedia

Commons

Map of the

Shephelah,

Kyle Keimer

Page 4: Investigating the Ancient Past - MQ...Investigating the Past at Khirbet el- Rai Khirbet el-Ra‘i(pronounced ‘el’ ‘r-eye’) is an archaeological site in Southern Israel. It

Investigating the Past at

Khirbet el- Rai

Khirbet el-Ra‘i (pronounced ‘el’ ‘r-eye’) is an archaeological site in Southern

Israel. It sits at the western edge of the mountain range known as the ‘Judean

Shephelah’.

The Arabic word ‘Khirbet’

translates as ‘Ruin of a Hill’

in English. The site is named

this because it is sits upon a

hill, or what is known as a

‘Tel’ in archaeology.

4

Photo of Khirbet el-Rai, 2019 Winter Season,

Khirbet el-Rai Facebook Page

Page 5: Investigating the Ancient Past - MQ...Investigating the Past at Khirbet el- Rai Khirbet el-Ra‘i(pronounced ‘el’ ‘r-eye’) is an archaeological site in Southern Israel. It

What is a Tel?

When many generations of people use the same area of ground, the destroyed architecture and remains of the previous people, over many hundreds of years, slowly build up to form a small hill. This is known as a ‘Tel’ in archaeology. This type of archaeological site is very useful in Ancient History and Archaeology. This is because when archaeologists excavate or dig at the site, each different time period can be easily viewed chronologically as they dig lower, from most recent to oldest.

5Photograph retrieved from Wikipedia Commons

Page 6: Investigating the Ancient Past - MQ...Investigating the Past at Khirbet el- Rai Khirbet el-Ra‘i(pronounced ‘el’ ‘r-eye’) is an archaeological site in Southern Israel. It

In ancient times, Khirbet el-Rai was positioned

upon the boarder of two regions: Ancient Philistia

and Ancient Judah/Israel.

Philistia

was the

home of

the

Philistine

civilization

Judah was

the region

of the

Israelite

and

Canaanite

people.

Map of the Shephelah, Kyle Keimer

Page 7: Investigating the Ancient Past - MQ...Investigating the Past at Khirbet el- Rai Khirbet el-Ra‘i(pronounced ‘el’ ‘r-eye’) is an archaeological site in Southern Israel. It

Choosing an Archaeological Site:

Khirbet el-Rai sits on a

large hill right between

many other archaeological

sites that have been

significant within in the

history of Ancient Israel

and archaeology.

Because of this,

Archaeologists decided to

investigate the hill closer by

doing a ‘field walking

survey’ of the land.

7

WHY KHIRBET EL-RAI?

Map of the Shephelah, Kyle Keimer

Page 8: Investigating the Ancient Past - MQ...Investigating the Past at Khirbet el- Rai Khirbet el-Ra‘i(pronounced ‘el’ ‘r-eye’) is an archaeological site in Southern Israel. It

What is a ‘Field-Walking Survey?’

Field walking is one of the

first stages in an

archaeological excavation.

It is simply when a small

group of people walk upon

an area of land in an

organised line. As they

walk, they collect any

material (such as pottery,

clay, glass) which appears

on the surface.

8

EXACTLY AS IT SOUNDS!

Photograph accessed from Wikipedia Commons

Page 9: Investigating the Ancient Past - MQ...Investigating the Past at Khirbet el- Rai Khirbet el-Ra‘i(pronounced ‘el’ ‘r-eye’) is an archaeological site in Southern Israel. It

What is a ‘Field-Walking Survey?’

The collected material is then examined by archaeologists. They show a

sneak peak of what archaeological data may lie hidden beneath the

surface.

For example, if there are many pottery shards which are Roman in style

collected from the surface of a site, it is likely that a Roman site lies

beneath the ground surface.

9

EXACTLY AS IT SOUNDS!

Photographs

accessed from

Wikipedia

Commons

Page 10: Investigating the Ancient Past - MQ...Investigating the Past at Khirbet el- Rai Khirbet el-Ra‘i(pronounced ‘el’ ‘r-eye’) is an archaeological site in Southern Israel. It

Choosing an Archaeological Site:

The field-walking survey at Khirbet el-Rai collected pottery dating to

the 12th, 11th and 10th centuries BCE (1200-1000 BCE). This means

that humans were living on the Tel (Hill) in these time periods.

10

WHY KHIRBET EL-RAI?

Page 11: Investigating the Ancient Past - MQ...Investigating the Past at Khirbet el- Rai Khirbet el-Ra‘i(pronounced ‘el’ ‘r-eye’) is an archaeological site in Southern Israel. It

What does Khirbet el-Rai Look

Like?

The site has been split into five ‘areas’ for archaeologists to

investigate. We call them Area A, Area B, Area C, Area D1 and Area

D2.

11

Area A

Area C

Area B

Area D2Area D1

Page 12: Investigating the Ancient Past - MQ...Investigating the Past at Khirbet el- Rai Khirbet el-Ra‘i(pronounced ‘el’ ‘r-eye’) is an archaeological site in Southern Israel. It

Area A

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Photo of the Squares from Area A, 2019

Winter Season, Macquarie University

Page 13: Investigating the Ancient Past - MQ...Investigating the Past at Khirbet el- Rai Khirbet el-Ra‘i(pronounced ‘el’ ‘r-eye’) is an archaeological site in Southern Israel. It

Area D2

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Photo of the Squares from Area D2, 2019

Winter Season, Macquarie University

Page 14: Investigating the Ancient Past - MQ...Investigating the Past at Khirbet el- Rai Khirbet el-Ra‘i(pronounced ‘el’ ‘r-eye’) is an archaeological site in Southern Israel. It

Area BLET’S TAKE A CLOSER LOOK…….

Page 15: Investigating the Ancient Past - MQ...Investigating the Past at Khirbet el- Rai Khirbet el-Ra‘i(pronounced ‘el’ ‘r-eye’) is an archaeological site in Southern Israel. It

Area B

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Photo of the Squares from Area B, Macquarie University

In Area B, archaeologists

were able to fully uncover the

remains of several stone

walls which form a large

ancient building, with several

rooms.

Inside the building,

archaeologists collected

approximately 100 complete

vessels which were able to

be fully restored (pieced back

together).

Page 16: Investigating the Ancient Past - MQ...Investigating the Past at Khirbet el- Rai Khirbet el-Ra‘i(pronounced ‘el’ ‘r-eye’) is an archaeological site in Southern Israel. It

What has been found so far?

16

N

SMALL STORAGE JUG

Photo of intact jug from Area B,

Eva Rummery

Page 17: Investigating the Ancient Past - MQ...Investigating the Past at Khirbet el- Rai Khirbet el-Ra‘i(pronounced ‘el’ ‘r-eye’) is an archaeological site in Southern Israel. It

What has been found so far?

17

N

STORAGE JARS

Photo of smashed pottery from Area B,

Kyle Keimer

Page 18: Investigating the Ancient Past - MQ...Investigating the Past at Khirbet el- Rai Khirbet el-Ra‘i(pronounced ‘el’ ‘r-eye’) is an archaeological site in Southern Israel. It

What has been found so far?

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SMALL STORAGE JUG AND LARGE STORAGE VESSELS

• Storage jars were used to hold large portions of grain, oil or other food items.

Based on their shape and contents, we can learn what types of food the

household or village was consuming.

• Small Storage Jugs were used in Ancient Israel to store precious goods that

were not traded in large quantities. This jar shows that the people living at

the house were able to more expensive items, which could be transported in

small jars like these.

Photo of

reconstructed

pottery from

Area B,

Kyle Keimer

Photo of Jar from

Area B,

Eva Rummery

Page 19: Investigating the Ancient Past - MQ...Investigating the Past at Khirbet el- Rai Khirbet el-Ra‘i(pronounced ‘el’ ‘r-eye’) is an archaeological site in Southern Israel. It

Dating Methods at Khirbet El-Rai

For archaeologists, pottery acts like a calendar. Just like fashion and clothing,

in the ancient world, pottery would change shape over periods of time. As the

food in which populations consumed changed over time, and as technology

evolved ( like the invention of the potting wheel) pottery was crafted differently.

Because of this, pottery can tell us an approximate date (a date range) of the

area in a site which it is found.

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WHY IS POTTERY IMPORTANT?

Late Bronze Age

1600- 1300BCIron Age 1

1200-1000BC

Iron Age 2

1000-800BC

Pictures accessed from the Megiddo Excavation reports

Page 20: Investigating the Ancient Past - MQ...Investigating the Past at Khirbet el- Rai Khirbet el-Ra‘i(pronounced ‘el’ ‘r-eye’) is an archaeological site in Southern Israel. It

Why is pottery important?

Large Storage Jars in Ancient Israel slowly become rounder, and circular in

shape over time. Though they look similar, can you notice the defining

differences between these storage jars from different time periods? Look

closely at the rims and in the shoulders of the jar.

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EXAMPLE: CAN YOU SPOT THE DIFFERENCE?

Late Bronze Age

1600- 1300BCIron Age 1

1200-1000BC

Iron Age 2

1000-800BC

Page 21: Investigating the Ancient Past - MQ...Investigating the Past at Khirbet el- Rai Khirbet el-Ra‘i(pronounced ‘el’ ‘r-eye’) is an archaeological site in Southern Israel. It

21

Late Bronze Age

1600- 1300BC

Iron Age 1

1200-1000BC

Iron Age 2

1000-800BC

Based on the shape, can you work out which time

period this jar found in Area B at Khirbet el-Rai

dates to?

Page 22: Investigating the Ancient Past - MQ...Investigating the Past at Khirbet el- Rai Khirbet el-Ra‘i(pronounced ‘el’ ‘r-eye’) is an archaeological site in Southern Israel. It

Dating Methods at Khirbet El-Rai

This pot dates to the Iron Age I, or 1200-1000BC! The shape has not quite

become as round as those pots from Iron Age II, but curvier then those of the

Late Bronze Age.

Some of these jars found in Area B still contained seeds from their original use!

These were used for Carbon 14 dating. The Carbon 14 results also dated the

collection of pottery from the layer of Area B where this pot was found to the

Iron Age I period, giving a more accurate date of 1100 BC.

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IRON AGE I

Page 23: Investigating the Ancient Past - MQ...Investigating the Past at Khirbet el- Rai Khirbet el-Ra‘i(pronounced ‘el’ ‘r-eye’) is an archaeological site in Southern Israel. It

Why are all the pots broken?

It is typical in an excavation to find shattered pottery. However in Area B, Some

vessels were found lying within another smashed pot, showing that they had

fallen upon one another as they broke. Many layers of ash were also found

between the pots alongside large beams of burnt wood.

What does this tell Archaeologists?

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DESTRUCTION IN AREA B

Photo of

smashed

pottery in Area

B,

Eva Rummery

Page 24: Investigating the Ancient Past - MQ...Investigating the Past at Khirbet el- Rai Khirbet el-Ra‘i(pronounced ‘el’ ‘r-eye’) is an archaeological site in Southern Israel. It

Why are all the pots broken?

This evidence all shows that the building of Area B was severely burnt, and fell

to the ground during this fire. This destruction s dated to the same time period

as many similar burnt buildings at surrounding sites. These fires are believed to

have been caused by Philistine people as they moved inland into Israel from

the coast.

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DESTRUCTION IN AREA B

3D

reconstruction

of Square

DD16, Area B,

Kyle Keimer