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Tel Arad
Also known
as Tel Arad, Tell 'Arad, Arad Rabbah, Iarda, Samra(?) |
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City of the Negev Like
many cities in the Holy Land, Arad was repeatedly settled because of its
strategic geographical location. Though situated in an area with
little rainfall, Arad was inhabited frequently in ancient times because
of its position along the routes coming from the east and southeast.
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Early Bronze City Arad
was 30 acres in size in the Early Bronze period (3000-2300 B.C.) and never
reached this size again. Its importance at this time was because of
trading expeditions which traveled from here - to Sinai in the south to
mine copper, and to the east for extracting bitumen from the Dead Sea. |
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The "Arad House" The
houses at this site had very similar features (not unlike today's
suburban tracts in the U.S.). The "Arad House" was found
at other sites in the Early Bronze, but nowhere more than here. The
features include a broad-room style house, benches lining the walls, a
stone pillar base in the center to support the roof, and a door socket on
the left-hand side of the entrance. |
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Border Fortress
In the Iron Age, a major fortress
was erected on the summit of the site to protect Israel's southeastern
border. While Amalekites and other nomadic peoples could be
troublemakers, Judah's chief enemy in this direction was Edom.
This fortress was destroyed by the Edomites at least once. |
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Israelite Temple
Inside the Iron Age fortress,
archaeologists found remains of a temple used for several centuries
during the time of the Divided Monarchy. Though worship centers
outside of Jerusalem were forbidden by Moses (Deut 12), high places
flourished throughout the land according to the Bible. The
sacrificial altar is visible in the outer courtyard. |
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Holy of Holies
No ancient documents describe the
worship practices of this temple, but the existence of two standing
stones and two incense altars points to the worship of two deities at
this site. Most probably, the Israelites here worshipped
"Yahweh and his Asherah," a corruption of true biblical
religion that is attested in other archaeological finds. |
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