Khirbet Qeiyafa

Excavation directors:		Prof. Yosef Garfinkel (Hebrew University) Mr. Saar Ganor (Israel Antiquities Authority)
Institution		The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Dates of excavation season:		June 20th till July 30th 2010
Location:		Israel, 20 miles southwest of Jerusalem
Periods:		Iron Age, early 10th century BC; Hellenistic
Nearest village:		Kibbutz Netiv Ha-Lamed Hei

The archaeological site of Khirbet Qeiyafa, a fortified city in Judah from the time of King David, is located on the hills that border the Elah Valley on the north. This is a key strategic location in the biblical kingdom of Judah, in the main road from Philistia and the Coastal Plain to Jerusalem, Bethlehem and Hebron in the hill country. In this area one of the world's most famous battles took place, the battle between David and Goliath.

Khirbet Qeiyafa location

Khirbet Qeiyafa is a forgotten Biblical site. This is most surprising in view of its massive fortifications of megalithic stones which still stand to a height of 2-3 m, and its strategic geopolitical location.

Historical Identification?

The site of Khirbet Qeiyafa has never been excavated. So far it has largely been neglected by archaeologists and biblical scholars and no historical identification has been suggested for it.

In the past we suggested an identification with the biblical city of Azekah, but the dating of the Iron Age settlement to the early 10th century BC clearly disproves our first hypothesis.

In the 2008 seasons we uncovered at the site two gates, one in the east, facing Jerusalem and one in the western side of the site. Khirbet Qeiyafa is the only site in the Kingdoms of Judah and Israel with two gates. This unique feature provides a clear indication of the site's identity as biblical Sha`arayim, a place name that means "two gates" in Hebrew. Sha`arayim is mentioned three times in the Bible: Jos 15, 36, 1 Sam 17:52 and 1 Ch 4:31-32). It is located near the Elah valley, associated with King David twice, and not mentioned in conjunction with any other later First Temple period tradition. This accords with the archaeological and radiometric data that indicate a single-phase settlement in the early 10th century BCE at Khirbet Qeiyafa.

For a detailed article on the site identification see: Yosef Garfinkel and Saar Ganor,
Khirbet Qeiyafa: Sha`arayim. Journal of Hebrew Scriptures - Volume 8: Article 22 (2008). This appears on line: http://www.arts.ualberta.ca/JHS/Articles/article_99.pdf

Find out more in the 2009 Season Information page!

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