Editing Tel Arad

{{short description|Archaeological mound located west of the Dead Sea}}
{{About||the modern city|Arad, Israel |the Bedouin village|Tel Arad, Israel }}
{{Infobox ancient site
|name          = Tel Arad 
|native_name   = {{lang|he|תל ערד}}<br/>{{lang|ar|تل عراد}}
|alternate_name= Tell 'Arad
|image         = File:Tel arad fortress.JPG
|alt=
|caption       = Aerial view of the Israelite fortress
|map_type      = Israel 
|map_alt=
|map_size      = 120 
|location      = Israel 
|region        = [[Negev]]
|coordinates   = {{coord|31|16|52|N|35|7|34|E|display=inline}}
|type=|part_of=|length=|width=|area=|height=|builder=|material=|built=|abandoned=|epochs=|cultures=|dependency_of=|occupants=|event=|excavations=
|archaeologists= [[Yohanan Aharoni]], [[Ruth Amiran]] 
|condition=|ownership=
|public_access = [[National parks of Israel|National Park]]
|website=
|notes=
}}

'''Tel Arad''' ({{langx|he|תל ערד}}) or '''Tell 'Arad''' ({{langx|ar|تل عراد|Tall ʿArād}}) is an archaeological [[Tell (archaeology)|tell]], or mound, located west of the [[Dead Sea]], about {{convert|10|km|0|abbr=off}} west of the Israeli city of [[Arad, Israel|Arad]] in an area surrounded by mountain ridges which is known as the Arad Plain. The site is about 10.1 ha (25 acres).

The lower [[Canaanite religion|Canaanite]] settlement and the upper Israelite citadel are now part of the Tel Arad [[National Park (Israel)|National Park]], which has begun projects to restore the walls of the upper and lower sites.

==Proposed identification==
It was first identified in modern literature in 1841 by [[Edward Robinson (scholar)|Edward Robinson]] in his ''[[Biblical Researches in Palestine]]'', on account of the similarity of the Arabic place name, Tell 'Arad, with the ''Harad'' in the [[Book of Joshua]].<ref name=Robinson>{{cite book|author1=Edward Robinson|author2=Eli Smith|title=Biblical Researches in Palestine|year=1841|publisher=Crocker & Brewster|pages=473–|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JLZNAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA473}} See also Tell Arad in Robinson's [https://archive.org/details/biblicalresearch03robiuoft/page/114/mode/1up name list]</ref><ref name=Velde>{{cite book |author=[[Charles William Meredith van de Velde]] |title= Narrative of a Journey Through Syria and Palestine in 1851 and 1852 |year= 1854 |publisher=[[Blackwood (publishing house)|W. Blackwood and Sons]] |pages= 84– |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=HMklz1nAl0sC&pg=PA84}}</ref>

Elitsur observes that although the site remained uninhabited for 1,100 years, the name has endured, preserved by nomads.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Elitzur |first=Yoel |title=Ancient Place Names in the Holy Land: Preservation and History |publisher=The Hebrew University Magness Press ; Eisenbrauns |year=2004 |location=Jerusalem ; Winona Lake, Virginia |pages=49}}</ref>

==History==
===Chalcolithic===
Stratum V: The site is divided into a lower city and an upper section on a hill. In the Late [[Chalcolithic]] (c. 4000 BCE), the lower city was settled for the first time.<ref>Ruth Amiran et al., "Early Arad : the Chalcolithic settlement and Early Bronze city. Volume 1, First-fifth seasons of excavations, 1962-1966", Jerusalem: [[Israel Exploration Society]], 1978</ref><ref>Ruth Amiran et al., "Early Arad, The Chalcolithic and Early Bronze IB Settlements and the Early Bronze II City: Architecture and Planning, Volume II: Sixth to Eighteenth Seasons of Excavations, 1971-1978, 1980-1984", Jerusalem: Israel Exploration Society, 1996, ISBN 978-9652210319</ref>

===Early Bronze Age===
For the subdivisions of the Bronze Age, see [[Bronze Age#Near East Bronze Age divisions]].

In the Early Bronze Age, Tel Arad (Strata IV-I) was occupied in the Early Bronze I–II and took part in the [[Beersheba Valley]] [[copper]] trade. In general Tel Arad lies in a drier region where frequencies of human activity depended upon oscillations toward wetter climate conditions.

====Early Bronze IB====
The Early Bronze IB (c. 3300/3200–3050/3000 BCE) the city of Tel Arad Stratum IV flourished. There was an amount of Egyptian pottery found indicating trade.

'''Climate'''. The Southern Levant during the EB IB was dominated by very humid climate conditions.<ref>Langgut et al.</ref> In the northern part of the Southern Levant there were higher levels of arboreal Mediterranean tree pollen and olive pollen. This was a [[proto-urban]] period where settlements spread and population grew, also spreading human activity into the Negev region.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Regev |first1=J. |last2=de Miroschedji |first2=P. |last3=Greenberg |first3=R. |last4=Braun |first4=E. |last5=Greenhut |first5=Z. |first6=Elisabetta |last6=Boaretto |year=2012 |title=Chronology of the Early Bronze Age in the Southern Levant: New Analysis for a High Chronology |journal=Radiocarbon |volume=54 |issue=3-4 |doi=10.1017/S003382220004724X}}</ref>

====Early Bronze II====
[[File:The Arad House 1.JPG|thumb|250px|Ceramic model of a house of the "Arad house" type, Tel Arad, c. 3,000–2,650 BCE. [[Israel Museum]], Jerusalem.]]

The Early Bronze II (c. 3050/3000–2750/2700 BCE) saw rich remains at Tel Arad Stratum III (EB IIA) and II (EB IIB).<ref>{{cite journal |last1= Regev |first1= Johanna |last2= Paz |first2= Sarit |last3= Greenberg |first3= Raphael |author-link3= Raphael Greenberg |last4= Boaretto |first4= Elisabetta |year= 2019 |title= Radiocarbon chronology of the EB I–II and II–III transitions at Tel Bet Yerah, and its implications for the nature of social change in the southern Levant |journal=[[Levant (journal)| Levant]] |volume= 51 |issue= 1 |pages= 54–75 |doi= 10.1080/00758914.2020.1727238}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1= Finkelstein |first1= Israel |author-link1= Israel Finkelstein |last2= Adams |first2= Matthew J. |last3= Dunseth |first3= Zachary C. |last4= Shahack-Gross |first4= Ruth |year= 2018 |title= The Archaeology and History of the Negev and Neighbouring Areas in the Third Millennium BCE: A New Paradigm |journal=[[Tel Aviv (journal)| Tel Aviv]] |volume= 45 |issue= 1 |pages= 63–88 |doi= 10.1080/03344355.2018.1412054}}</ref>

*Stratum III (EB IIA) was an urban town with city wall, palace, sacred precinct, public buildings, and reservoir. It was destroyed around 2800 BCE.
*Stratum II (EB IIB) saw Tel Arad quickly rebuilt. The material culture was the same as Stratum III.

====Early Bronze III====
The Early Bronze III (c. 2750–2350 BCE) saw Arad abandoned. This may have been associated with the rise of central trading sites in the [[Negev Highlands]] related to the copper industry in the [[Arabah]] and trade towards Egypt in the [[Old Kingdom]].<ref>Finkelstein et al. (2018). pp. 63–88.</ref>

*Stratum I: a sparse settlement in the ruins of the city of Stratum II. Abandoned by around 2650 BCE.

===Iron Age===
[[File:Arad Debir 2.jpg|right|thumbnail|[[Holy of holies]] of temple, with two incense pillars and two stele, one dedicated to Yahweh, and one most likely to [[Asherah]]]]
With the Collapse of the Late Bronze Age, the Fall of the Egyptian New Kingdom during the [[Twentieth Dynasty of Egypt|20th Dynasty]] saw its control over polities in the Southern Levant decline.

====Iron Age IB====
Stratum XII: The site was resettled from the 11th century BCE onwards,<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Herzog |first1=Ze'ev |author-link1=Ze'ev Herzog |last2= Aharoni |first2= Miriam |last3=Rainey |first3=Anson F. |author-link3=Anson Rainey |last4= Moshkovitz |first4= Shmuel |title= The Israelite Fortress at Arad |journal=[[Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research]] |pages=1–34 |number= 254, Spring 1984 |jstor= 1357030 |year= 1984 |doi= 10.2307/1357030 |s2cid= 201427922 |url= https://www.jstor.org/stable/1357030|url-access= subscription }}</ref> initially as an unwalled area defined as an official or sacred domain was established on the upper hill, and then later as a garrison-town or citadel.{{citation needed |date= August 2022}}

====Iron Age II====
Tel Arad now became a fortified stronghold of the [[Kingdom of Judah]].

*Stratum XI: In Iron IIA (10th century BCE) a Judahite casemate fortress was built. This fortress would be rebuilt six times.
*Stratum X: The fortress saw improvements with solid walls and a towering gate in the 9th century BCE.
*Stratum IX: 8th century BCE.
*Stratum VIII: A short-lived stratum ending with the destruction caused by Sennacherib in 701 BCE.
*Stratum VII: At the end of the 7th century BCE, Edomites might have destroyed the fortress.
*Stratum VI: The last Judahite fortress destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BCE. In the 3rd season of excavation, over [[Arad ostraca|100 ostraca]] (inscribed pottery shards) written in Hebrew, dated to the 7th century BCE were found in stratum VI of the fort at Arad.<ref>Yohanan Aharoni, "Hebrew Ostraca from Tel Arad", ''Israel Exploration Journal'' vol. 16, no. 1, pp. 1–7, 1966</ref>{{sfn|Pike|2020|p=203}} Most of these consist of everyday military correspondence between the commanders of the fort and are addressed to Eliashib, thought to be the fort's [[quartermaster]].{{sfn|Kershner|2016}} One [[ostracon]] mentions "[[House of Yahweh (biblical term)|house of YHWH]]", which some scholars believe is a reference to the [[Temple in Jerusalem|Jerusalem temple]].<ref>{{harvnb|Pike|2020|p=205}}; {{harvnb|King|Stager|2001|p=314}}; {{harvnb|Dever|2001|p=212}}</ref> With them was found a partial, [[hieratic]] ostracon, similarly dated. The supplies listed included south-Egyptian barley and animal fats (vs the wheat and olive oil in the Hebrew ostraca).<ref>[[Shemuel Yeivin|Yeivin, S.]] (1966). "A Hieratic Ostracon from Tel Arad". ''[[Israel Exploration Journal]]'', vol. 16, no. 3, pp. 153–59.</ref> Later an ostracon was found with text in both hieratic and [[Paleo-Hebrew alphabet|Hebrew]]-[[Phoenician alphabet|Phoenician]] [[signary]], both not a [[bilingual]] text.<ref>Yeivin, S. (1969). "An Ostracon from Tel Arad Exhibiting a Combination of Two Scripts". ''[[The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology]]'', vol. 55, pp. 98–102.</ref>

=====Temple and Cannabis use=====
[[File:Tel Arad DSC03799 (9).JPG|thumb|250px|Stratum X gate of Arad Fortress]]

The temple at Arad was uncovered by archaeologist [[Yohanan Aharoni]] in 1962 who spent the rest of his life investigating it, dying there in the mid-1970s.

In the [[holy of holies]] of this temple two [[altar (Judaism)#Altar of Incense|incense altars]] and two possible [[stele]] or massebot or [[Menhir|standing stones]] were found. Unidentified dark material preserved on their upper surfaces was submitted for [[organic residue analysis]] and THC, CBD, and CBN (which derive from [[cannabis]]) were detected on the smaller altar. The large one had many chemicals associated with frankincense. While the use of frankincense for cultic purposes is well-known, the presence of cannabis was novel, if not shocking. It represents the "first known evidence of [[hallucinogenic]] substance found in the [[Kingdom of Judah]]."<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Arie |first1=Eran |last2=Rosen |first2=Baruch |last3=Namdar |first3=Dvory |date=28 May 2020 |title=Cannabis and Frankincense at the Judahite Shrine of Arad |journal=Tel Aviv |volume=47 |pages=5–28 |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/03344355.2020.1732046 |publisher=Journal of the Institute of Archaeology of Tel Aviv University |doi=10.1080/03344355.2020.1732046 |s2cid=219763262|url-access=subscription }}</ref> Cannabis has been found at another religious archaeological site, [[Deir Alla inscription|Deir Alla]], as hemp fibre.<ref name="Steiner 2019 p. 145">{{cite journal |last=Steiner |first=Margreet |title=Iron Age Cultic Sites in Transjordan |journal=Religions |publisher=MDPI AG |volume=10 |issue=3 |date=2019-02-27 |issn=2077-1444 |doi=10.3390/rel10030145 |doi-access=free |page=145}}</ref>

===Persian period===
Stratum V: The settlement belonging to the Persian period.

===Hellenistic and Roman periods===
Stratum IV (Hellenistic): It is believed that several citadels were built one upon the other and existed in the Hellenistic and Roman periods.

Herod even reconstructed the lower city for the purpose of making bread.{{dubious|... or actually ridiculous. Agricultural...?|date=July 2019}} The site lasted until the end of the [[Bar Kokhba revolt]] 135 CE.

===Muslim conquest to Abbasid period===
Tel Arad lay in ruins for 500 years until the [[History of Israel#Early Muslim period|Early Islamic period]], when the former Roman citadel was rebuilt and remodeled by some prosperous clan in the area and functioned for 200 years until around 861, when there was a breakdown of central authority and a period of widespread rebellion and unrest. The citadel was destroyed and no more structures were built on the site.

==Excavations==
[[File:Tell Arad in the Survey of Western Palestine 1880.25 (cropped).jpg |thumb|right|Tell Arad in the [[PEF Survey of Western Palestine]], 1880]]
The upper and lower areas of Tel Arad were excavated during 18 seasons by [[Ruth Amiran]] and [[Yohanan Aharoni]] between 1962 and 1984.<ref>Yohanan Aharoni and Ruth Amiran, "Excavations at Tel Arad: Preliminary Report on the First Season, 1962", ''[[Israel Exploration Journal]]'', vol. 14, no. 3, pp. 131-147, 1964</ref><ref>Aharoni, Y. "Excavations at Tel Arad: Preliminary Report on the Second Season, 1963." ''Israel Exploration Journal'', vol. 17, no. 4, 1967, pp. 233–49</ref> An additional 8 seasons were done on the Iron Age water system.<ref>Talis, Svetlana. "Tel 'Arad: Final Report." ''[[Hadashot Arkheologiyot]]: Excavations and Surveys in Israel'', vol. 127, 2015</ref>

==See also==
* [[Archaeology of Israel]]
* [[Cities of the ancient Near East]]
* [[Tourism in Israel]]
* [[Tel Arad, Israel]], unrecognized Bedouin village near the ancient site

==References==
{{reflist}}

===Sources===
{{refbegin|2}}
*{{cite journal |last=Pike |first=Dana M. |title=Israelite Inscriptions from the Time of Jeremiah and Lehi |journal=Faculty Publications |date=4 February 2020 |url= https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/facpub/3697 |access-date=2 December 2020}}
*{{cite web |first=Isabel |last=Kershner |title=New Evidence on When Bible Was Written: Ancient Shopping Lists |website=The New York Times |date=11 April 2016 |url= https://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/12/world/middleeast/new-evidence-onwhen-bible-was-written-ancient-shopping-lists.html |access-date=9 December 2020}}
*{{cite book |last=King |first=Philip J. |title=Jeremiah: An Archaeological Companion |pages=57– |date=15 April 1993 |publisher=Westminster John Knox Press |isbn=978-0-664-22443-1 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=7xZ-HUcAEP8C&pg=PA57}}
* {{Cite book
|last1=King
|first1=Philip J.
|last2=Stager
|first2=Lawrence E.
|title=Life in Biblical Israel
|publisher=Westminster John Knox Press
|year=2001
|isbn=978-0-664-22148-5
|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OtOhypZz_pEC&pg=PAxxiii
}}
*{{cite book |last=Dever |first=William G. |title=What Did the Biblical Writers Know and When Did They Know It?: What Archeology Can Tell Us About the Reality of Ancient Israel |date=10 May 2001 |publisher=Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing |isbn=978-0-8028-2126-3 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=6-VxwC5rQtwC}}
{{refend}}

==External links==
*[https://en.parks.org.il/reserve-park/tel-arad-national-park/ Tel Arad National Park] official wrbsite. Accessed 27 May 2025.
*[https://madainproject.com/tel_arad_temple Tel Arad Temple], detailed illustrated article at Madain Project. Re-accessed 27 May 2025.
*[http://holyland-pictures.com/tag/negev/arad/ Photos of Tel Arad] {{dead link|date= May 2025}}

{{National parks of Israel}}
{{Southern District (Israel)}}
{{Sites of the Israelite Settlement}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Arad}}
[[Category:National parks of Israel]]
[[Category:Hebrew Bible cities]]
[[Category:Torah cities]]
[[Category:Ancient sites in Israel]]
[[Category:Prehistoric sites in Israel]]
[[Category:Former populated places in West Asia]]
[[Category:Canaanite cities]]
[[Category:Bronze Age sites in Israel]]
[[Category:Iron Age sites in Israel]]
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[[Category:Protected areas of Southern District (Israel)]]
[[Category:Buildings and structures in Southern District (Israel)]]
[[Category:Tells (archaeology)]]
[[Category:Ancient Jewish settlements of Judaea]]
[[Category:1962 archaeological discoveries]]
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