Beit She'arim necropolis
Beit She'arim National Park | |
---|---|
Location | Haifa District, Israel |
Nearest city | Haifa |
Coordinates | 32°42′8″N 35°7′37″E / 32.70222°N 35.12694°E |
Governing body | Israel Nature and Parks Authority |
Official name | Necropolis of Beit She'arim: A Landmark of Jewish Renewal |
Type | Cultural |
Criteria | ii, iii |
Designated | 2015 (39th session) |
Reference no. | 1471 |
Region | Europe and North America |
Beit She'arim necropolis (Hebrew: בֵּית שְׁעָרִים, "House of Gates") is an extensive necropolis of rock-cut tombs near the remains of the ancient Jewish town of Beit She'arim. In early modern times the site was the Arab village of Sheikh Bureik;[1] it was depopulated in the 1920s as a result of the Sursock Purchases, and identified as Beit She'arim in 1936 by historical geographer Samuel Klein.[2]
The partially excavated archaeological site known as Beit She'arim National Park consists of the rock-cut tombs and some remains of the town itself. The site is managed by the National Parks Authority. It borders the town of Kiryat Tiv'on on the northeast and is located five kilometres west of the moshav named after the historical location in 1926, a decade prior to its archaeological identification.[3] It is situated 20 km east of Haifa in the southern foothills of the Lower Galilee.
In 2015, the necropolis was declared a
Although only a portion of the necropolis has been excavated, it has been likened to a book inscribed in stone. Its catacombs,
Name
According to Moshe Sharon, following Yechezkel Kutscher, the name of the city was Beit She'arayim or Kfar She'arayim (the House/Village of Two Gates).[1] The ancient Yemenite Jewish pronunciation of the name is also "Bet She'arayim", which is more closely related to the Ancient Greek rendition of the name, i.e. Βησάρα, "Besara".[11]
The popular orthography for the Hebrew word for house, בֵּית, is "beit", while the traditional King James one is "beth", the effort being now to replace both with the etymologically better suited "bet".
History of the settlement
Iron Age
Pottery shards discovered at the site indicate that a first settlement there dates back to the Iron Age.[12]
Second Temple period
Beit She'arayim was founded at the end of the 1st century BCE, during the reign of King
Roman and Byzantine periods
After the destruction of the
to be buried next to his grave.Almost 300 inscriptions primarily in
Early Islamic period
From the beginning of the Early Islamic period (7th century), settlement was sparse.
Crusader period
There is some evidence of activity in the nearby village area and necropolis dating to the Crusader period (12th century), probably connected to travellers and temporary settlement.[12]
Ottoman period
A small Arab village called Sheikh Bureik was located above the necropolis at least from the late 16th century.[19] A map by Pierre Jacotin from Napoleon's invasion of 1799 showed the place, named as Cheik Abrit.[20]
British Mandate
The October
Archaeology
History of archaeological research
The archaeological importance of the site was recognized in the 1880s by the
In 2014, the excavations at the site were resumed after a 50-year pause[clarification needed] by Adi Erlich, on behalf of the University of Haifa's Institute of Archaeology, and are ongoing as of 2021.[29] Erlich is focusing her excavation on the actual ancient town, which occupied the hilltop above the well-studied necropolis, and of which only a few buildings had been previously discovered.[29]
Main findings
Jewish necropolis
A total of 21
Aside from an extensive body of inscriptions in several languages, the walls and tombs have many images, engraved and carved in
In October 2009, two new caves were opened to the public whose burial vaults date to the first two centuries CE.[34] Catacomb no. 20 and no. 14 are regularly open to the public, but most catacombs remain closed to the public, with a few being opened on weekends upon special request and prior appointment.
Cave of Yehuda HaNasi (Judah the Prince)
The
Himyarite tombs
In 1937, Benjamin Mazar revealed at Beit She'arim a system of tombs belonging to the Jews of
Abbasid period
Glassmaking industry
In 1956, a bulldozer working at the site unearthed an enormous rectangular slab, 11 × 6.5 × 1.5 feet, weighing 9 tons. Initially, it was paved over, but it was eventually studied and found to be a gigantic piece of glass. A
Poem inside catacomb
An
Moshe Sharon speculates that this poem might be marking the beginning of the practice of treating this site as the sanctuary of Sheikh Abreik and suggests the site was used for burial at this time and possibly later as well.[1][45] He further notes that the cave within which the inscription was found forms part of a vast area of ancient ruins which constituted a natural place for the emergence of a local shrine. Drawing on the work of Tawfiq Canaan, Sharon cites his observation that 32% of the sacred sites he visited in Palestine were located in the vicinity of ancient ruins.[45]
See also
Gallery
-
Facade of catacomb no. 14, "Cave of Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi"
-
Catacomb no. 14 ("Cave of Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi"), entrance door from within
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Facade of Catacomb no. 20, the "Cave of the Coffins"
-
Stone door at entrance to Catacomb no. 20 imitating embossed wooden door
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Corridor in Catacomb no. 20, "Cave of the Coffins"
-
Sarcophagi in Catacomb no. 20
-
Chamber in Catacomb no. 20
-
Menorah in Catacomb no. 20
-
Catacomb no. 20
-
Chamber of burial niches
-
Chamber with decorated sarcophagus (bull and eagle)
-
Sarcophagi
-
Sarcophagus in a catacomb corridor
-
Sarcophagus
References
- ^ a b c Sharon (2004), p. XXXVII
- Vita § 24, (Greek: Βησάραν).
- ^ Modern Bet She'arim Jewish Virtual Library
- ^ Avigad (1958), p. 36.
- ^ Avigad (1958), p. 37.
- ^ Conder & Kitchener (1881), pp. 325 - ff.
- ^ Conder & Kitchener (1881), p. 351.
- ^ Mazar (1957), p. vi (Introduction).
- ^ Eichner, Itamar (2015). "Beit She'arim declared World Heritage Site". Ynetnews.
- UNESCO World Heritage Site,
- ^ Babylonian Talmud, Punctuated (תלמוד בבלי מנוקד), ed. Yosef Amar, Jerusalem 1980, s.v. Sanhedrin 32b (Hebrew)
- ^ a b c d e f g Negev & Gibson, eds. (2001)
- ^ Mazar (1957), p. 19.
- ^ a b "Beit She'arim – The Jewish necropolis of the Roman Period". www.mfa.gov.il. Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs. 2000. Retrieved 16 April 2016.
- Babylonian Talmud (Rosh Hashanah31a–b)
- ^ The Holy Land: An Oxford archaeological guide, From earliest times to 1700, Jerome Murphy-O'Connor
- ^ Hirschberg (1946), pp. 53–57, 148, 283–284.
- ^ Mazar (1957), p. 20.
- ^ Hütteroth & Abdulfattah (1977), p. 158.
- ^ Karmon, 1960, p. 163 Archived 2019-12-22 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Barron, 1923, Table XI, Sub-district of Haifa, p. 33
- ^ Avneri, 1984, p. 122
- ^ In 1925, according to List of villages sold by Sursocks and their partners to the Zionists since British occupation of Palestine, evidence to the Shaw Commission, 1930
- ^ Kenneth W. Stein, The Land Question in Palestine, 1917–1939, p. 60
- ^ Universal Jewish Encyclopedia, Vol. 6, entry "Colonies, Agricultural", p. 287.
- ^ Survey of Western Palestine, Vol. I, pp. 325–328, 343–351
- ^ Mazar (1957), p. 27.
- ^ Israel Antiquities Authority, Excavators and Excavations Permit for Year 2014, Survey Permit # A-7008. This survey was conducted by Tsvika Tsuk, Yosi Bordovitz, and Achia Cohen-Tavor, on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA).
- ^ a b Official Facebook page of renewed expedition
- ^ The Oxford encyclopedia of Archaeology in the Near East considers Beth She'arim of international importance (Volume 1, p. 309-11); Tessa Rajak considers its importance regional ("The rabbinic dead and the Diaspora dead at Beth She’arim" in P. Schäfer (ed.), The Talmud Yerushalmi and Graeco-Roman culture 1 (Tübingen 1997), pp. 349–66); S. Schwartz however, in Imperialism and Jewish society, 200 B.C.E. to 640 C.E. (Princeton 2001), pp. 153–8, plays down the importance of Beth She'arim.
- UNESCO World Heritage Site"tentative list", summary from 2002
- OCLC 745203905.
- B. Maisler, 5 November 1936
- ^ 73 Years Later, Row Erupts Over Discovery of Beit Shearim Caves, Eli Ashkenazi for Haaretz, 29 October 2009. Re-accessed 26 January 2022.
- Babylonian Talmud (Ketubot103b)
- ^ Bet Shearim archaeology
- ^ Zelcer (2002), p. 74: "In 1954 two adjoining sepulchres in cave 14 in Bet She'arim were discovered bearing the inscriptions in Hebrew and Greek "R. Gamliel" and "R. Shimon", which are believed to be the coffins of the nasi and his brother."
- ^ The Oxford Encyclopedia of Archaeology in the Near East, Vol. 1, pp. 309–11. For a more cautious view see M. Jacobs, Die Institution des jüdischen Patriarchen, eine quellen- und traditionskritische Studie zur Geschichte der Juden in der Spätantike (Tübingen 1995), p. 247, n. 59.
- ^ Hirschberg (1946), pp. 53–57, 148, 283–284.
- ^ Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies, 43 (2013): British Museum, London; Article by Yosef Tobi, The Jews of Yemen in light of the excavation of the Jewish synagogue in Qanī’, p. 351.
- ^ Hirschberg (1946), pp. 56–57; p. 33 plate b. Christian Robin rejects the interpretation of the ligature qyl ḥmyr. He notes that today the inscription Menae presbyteros can no longer be seen. The only secured inscription is Ômêritôn [the Ḥimyari].
- ISBN 965-7121-03-5. p. 37.
- ^ "The Mystery Slab of Beth She'arim". Corning Museum of Glass. Archived from the original on 2012-02-20. Retrieved 2010-02-28.
- ^ Sharon (2004), p. XLI.
- ^ a b Sharon (2004), p. XLII.
Bibliography
- Avigad, N. (1958). Excavations at Beit She'arim, 1955 - Preliminary Report. Jerusalem: Israel Exploration Society.
- Conder, C.R.; Kitchener, H.H. (1881). The Survey of Western Palestine: Memoirs of the Topography, Orography, Hydrography, and Archaeology. Vol. 1. London: Committee of the Palestine Exploration Fund.
- Hirschberg, Haim Zeev (1946). Yisrā’ēl ba-‘Arāb, Tel Aviv (Hebrew).
- Hütteroth, Wolf-Dieter; Abdulfattah, Kamal (1977). Historical Geography of Palestine, Transjordan and Southern Syria in the Late 16th Century. Erlanger geographische Arbeiten. Vol. Sonderband 5. Erlangen, Germany: Vorstand der Fränkischen Geographischen Gesellschaft. ISBN 3-920405-41-2.
- OCLC 492594574.
- ISBN 0-8264-1316-1. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
- ISBN 978-90-04-13197-2.}
- Zelcer, Heshey (2002). A Guide to the Jerusalem Talmud. ISBN 9781581126303. Retrieved 16 April 2016.
Further reading
- Mazar, Benjamin (1973) [1957]. Beth She'arim I: Catacombs 1–4. Vol. 1. Jerusalem.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - Schwabe, M.; Lifshitz, B. (1974) [1967]. Beth She'arim II: The Greek Inscriptions. Vol. 2. Jerusalem.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
External links
- The Necropolis of Beit She'arim - A Landmark of Jewish Renewal
- Bet Shearim National Park - Israel Nature and Parks Authority
- Beit She'arim National Park - official site
- Beit She-arim-The Jewish necropolis of the Roman Period, Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs
- Video Tour of Beit She'arim necropolis YouTube
- Jacques Neguer, The Catacombs:Conservation and reconstruction of the catacombs, Israel Antiquities Site - Conservation Department
- Survey of Western Palestine, Map 5: IAA, Wikimedia commons