Tel
Beer-sheba, the site of an ancient city, is located on a hill overlooking the
Wadi Beer-sheba about two and a half miles east of the modern city of
Beersheba. The site was excavated from 1969 to 1976 by the Tel Aviv University
Institute of Archaeology, directed by Prof. Yohanan Aharoni, except for the
last season which was led by Prof. Ze'ev Herzog. Most of the dig was devoted to
uncovering the great, fortified, Israelite city traditionally dating to the
United Monarchy of King David (his reign being dated from 1000 B.C.E.) and,
later, to the kingdom of Judah (980–701 B.C.E.). During the last three seasons
of excavation (1974–1976), an effort was made to go below Beer-sheba of Iron
Age II to find earlier occupation. A considerable part of the site was dug down
to bedrock in order to find the earliest settlements at Beer-sheba. This effort
revealed four earlier occupational strata (Strata VI through IX). Excavations
were renewed by Prof Herzog between 1993 and 1995 in order to complete the
uncovering of the town's water system.
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