Mount Ebal site

Mount Ebal Site
Aerial photo
Mount Ebal site is located in the West Bank
Mount Ebal site
Shown within the West Bank
LocationWest Bank
RegionMount Ebal
Coordinates32°14′22″N 35°17′15″E / 32.23946°N 35.287396°E / 32.23946; 35.287396
Typecultic site
Height785 m
History
Materialfieldstones
PeriodsIron Age I
CulturesIsraelite
Site notes
Discovered1980
Excavation dates1982–1989
ArchaeologistsAdam Zertal; University of Haifa and the Israel Exploration Society
ConditionIn ruins
Public accessLimited

The Iron Age I Structure on Mt. Ebal,[1][2] also known as the Mount Ebal site,[1] Mount Ebal's Altar, and Joshua's Altar,[3][4] is an archeological site dated to the Iron Age I, located on Mount Ebal, West Bank.[1]

The Mount Ebal site was discovered by Israeli archaeologist Adam Zertal during the Manasseh Hill Country Survey in 1980.[1] Zertal, who later excavated the site for eight seasons, suggested to identify it as Joshua's Altar as featured in the Book of Joshua of the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament).[4] This identification was fiercely debated during the 1980s. Today, many archeologists agree that the structure was a site of an early Israelite cultic activity, however, its identification with Joshua's altar is disputed.[1][5][6]

The site and its possible archaeological significance in Jewish history became a political issue in 2021 after a portion of the site was damaged by municipal workers of the Palestinian National Authority.[7] This followed zoning changes that placed it under Palestinian jurisdiction. The damage to the site in turn promoted calls from the Israeli right to transform the site, which is currently not marked on maps as being of archaeological significance, into an archaeological park.[8]

  1. ^ a b c d e Hawkins, Ralph K. (2012). The Iron Age I Structure on Mt. Ebal: Excavation and Interpretation. Eisenbrauns. ISBN 978-1-57506-243-3.
  2. ^ "Discovery and Excavation of the Ebal Structure", The Iron Age I Structure on Mt. Ebal, Penn State University Press, pp. 4–29, 2012-06-22, doi:10.5325/j.ctv1bxgzq6.6, ISBN 9781575066745, retrieved 2022-04-30
  3. ^ Joshua's Altar: The Dig at Mount Ebal. 1992-01-01.
  4. ^ a b Zertal, A. (1985). Has Joshua's altar been found on Mt. Ebal?. Biblical Archaeology Society.
  5. ^ Antti Laato (2014). "The Cult Site on Mount Ebal: A Biblical Tradition Rewritten and Reinterpreted". In Koskenniemi, Erkki; Vos, Jacobus Cornelis de (eds.). Holy Places and Cult. Pennsylvania State University Press. p. 55. ISBN 978-952-12-3046-2. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
  6. ^ Ulrich, Eugene (14 April 2015). The Dead Sea Scrolls and the Developmental Composition of the Bible. BRILL. p. 61. ISBN 978-90-04-29603-9. Retrieved 30 April 2022.
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference :1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference Laz21 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).