El-Ahwat : A Fortified Site from the Early Iron Age Near Nahal 'Iron, Israel : Excavations 1993-2000

Leiden: Brill, 2012. First edition thus. Hardcover. Fine. xix, (1), 485, (1)pp. With a 32 page bibliography. Red buckram lettered in yellow. Illustrated with approx. 200 photos, drawings, archaeological ground plans and charts. A fine, as new copy.

This report presents the findings of a unique archaeological site in central Israel. The site is a fortified city, possibly from the Sea-Peoples Shardana, that contains intriguing architecture and many Egyptian finds. The Egyptian finds specifically indicate that it may have been an Egyptian stronghold with foreign mercenaries.

Contents: List of Figures; List of Tables; Preface; Introduction; History of the Excavations, the Staff, and the Methodology; Part One: Stratigraphy, Architecture, and Chronology; Chapter One The Site -- General Data; Chapter Two Plan and Fortifications; Chapter Three Stratigraphy and Chronology; Chapter Four Area A -- The City Gate (A1), the "Approach" (A2), and the Upper Terrace (A3); Chapter Five Area B -- A Sounding in the Western City Wall; Chapter Six Area C1 -- The Residential Quarter; Chapter Seven Area C2; Chapter Eight Area D -- The Central Quarter; Chapter Nine Area E1 -- A Sounding in the Southern Quarter Chapter Ten Area F -- Soundings in the Fortifications; Chapter Eleven Area T -- The Outside Tower; Part Two: The Finds; Chapter Twelve The Iron Age Pottery; Chapter Thirteen The Late Pottery; Chapter Fourteen Nine Scarabs, A Scaraboid, A Cylinder Seal, and a Bifacial Rectangular Plaque from El-Ahwat; Chapter Fifteen The Beads and Pendants; Chapter Sixteen An Ivory Caprid-Head from Area A3; Chapter Seventeen A Bronze Head from Area A3; Chapter Eighteen The Coins; Part Three: Economy and Environment; Chapter Nineteen The Stone Objects; Chapter Twenty The Flint Assemblage Chapter Twenty-One The Faunal Remains; A. Fish Remains; B. Shells; Chapter Twenty-Two A Furnace for the Processing of Iron; Chapter Twenty-Three Oil-Producing Installations; Chapter Twenty-Four Oil Press L4348 and its Implications; Chapter Twenty-Five The Ottoman Pipes; Part Four: Conclusions; Chapter Twenty-Six Architectural and Archaeological Parallels Between El-Ahwat and the Western Mediterranean; Chapter Twenty-Seven Archaeological and Historical Conclusions; Bibliography; List of Loci (OCLC)

Volume 24 in the Brill series, "Culture and History of the Ancient Near East."