Tel Shush ( he, תל שוש) or Tell Abu Shusha ( ar, تل أبو شوشة) is a tell located next to

Kibbutz A kibbutz ( he, קִבּוּץ / , lit. "gathering, clustering"; plural: kibbutzim / ) is an intentional community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. The first kibbutz, established in 1909, was Degania. Today, farming h ...

Mishmar HaEmek on the eastern slopes of the

Menashe Heights The Manasseh Hills or hill country of Manasseh, directly derived from Hebrew: Menashe Heights ( he, רָמוֹת מְנַשֶּׁה, Ramot Menashe, Manasseh Heights), called Balad ar-Ruha in Arabic, meaning "Land of Winds", is a geographical regi ...

, overlooking the Jezreel Valley. The tell's area is about 40 dunams and it rises to a height of 50 meters from its foot. The site was identified with Geva, mentioned in the list of cities conquered by Thutmose III; Geva‘ of the Horsemen, mentioned by

Josephus Flavius Josephus (; grc-gre, Ἰώσηπος, ; 37 – 100) was a first-century Romano-Jewish historian and military leader, best known for ''The Jewish War'', who was born in Jerusalem—then part of Roman Judea—to a father of priestly d ...

in '' The Jewish War'
3.3.1
; and Gaba Philippi from Roman times. The site contains remains of human settlement from the

Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

Hellenistic In Classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Mediterranean history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the emergence of the Roman Empire, as signified by the Battle of Actium in ...

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

, Early Arab, Crusader,

Mamluk Mamluk ( ar, مملوك, mamlūk (singular), , ''mamālīk'' (plural), translated as "one who is owned", meaning " slave", also transliterated as ''Mameluke'', ''mamluq'', ''mamluke'', ''mameluk'', ''mameluke'', ''mamaluke'', or ''marmeluke'') ...

and Ottoman periods.

Roman and Byzantine Period

"Herodian" tomb

A burial cave was discovered in 1980, one kilometer southwest of Tel Shush. The cave was carved into the right bank of Nahal Mishamr (Mishmar River). It has one chamber, with six burial niches or ''loculi'' and a courtyard in front of it. The finds within the cave are securely dated to the first century CE. Although the tomb was disturbed and the finds were scattered, none of the remains are dated to a later period, which means the tomb was in use only during that period. The ceramic finds include a red Slipware bowl, a fine-ware cup and a

skyphos A ''skyphos'' ( grc, σκύφος; plural ''skyphoi'') is a two-handled deep wine-cup on a low flanged base or none. The handles may be horizontal ear-shaped thumbholds that project from the rim (in both Corinthian and Athenian shapes), or they ma ...

with barbotine decoration. Three similar bowls were found next to Tel Shush. Other finds include a bowl, a juglet, "Heridoain" lamps and fragments of a

figurine A figurine (a diminutive form of the word ''figure'') or statuette is a small, three-dimensional sculpture that represents a human, deity or animal, or, in practice, a pair or small group of them. Figurines have been made in many media, with cl ...

of a horse with a rider. The most important discovery is a real-life sized

terracotta Terracotta, terra cotta, or terra-cotta (; ; ), in its material sense as an earthenware substrate, is a clay-based ceramic glaze, unglazed or glazed ceramic where the pottery firing, fired body is porous. In applied art, craft, construction, a ...

mask of a helmeted warrior. These finds contribute to the identification of Tel Shush with Geva Parashim.Mishmar Ha'emeq - Tel Shush, ''Hadashot Arkheologiyot'', 1981, Israel Antiquities Authority, pp. 15–16

Oil press and lead weights bearing the name "Geba"

Two caves were discovered in March 1981 on the foot of the tel during road construction. Within a large cave, olive oil installations were found. On the cave's wall are pits which were carved and plastered, which were used for storage. This cave is dated based on the ceramic assemblage to the first and second centuries CE. In the other, smaller cave, similar pits were found. Inside the cave, two lead weights were one on top of each other. One of the weights is decorated with geometrical signs, its size is 52x52 mm, and its weight about 72 grams. The other lead weight is slightly larger (62x55mm) and features a Greek inscription with the name of the city Gabe ( gr, ΓABE), the 218th year to its establishment and its weight, half of a ''libra''. This discovery further contributes to the identification of Tel Shush with ''Geva Parashim'' ("Geba of the Horsemen"), mentioned by

in '' The Jewish War'
3.3.1
, while others suggest that it may have been brought there from another place. The cave in which the weights were found is dated to the first to six centuries CE.Asriel Siegelmann, Two Lead Weights from Tẹ̄l Šōš (Tell Abū Šūše), ''Zeitschrift des Deutschen Palästina-Vereins'', Bd. 105 (1989), p. 123, Deutscher verein zur Erforschung Palästinas

Aqueduct

A 1.2 meter high

Roman aqueduct The Romans constructed aqueducts throughout their Republic and later Empire, to bring water from outside sources into cities and towns. Aqueduct water supplied public baths, latrines, fountains, and private households; it also supported mining o ...

was discovered during the expansion of the Mishmar HaEmek– Ein HaShofet road next to Tel Shush. Another similar aqueduct was found in the summer of 1981.

References

{{reflist Tells (archaeology) Bronze Age sites in Israel Iron Age sites in Israel Former populated places in Southwest Asia

Roman and Byzantine Period

"Herodian" tomb

Oil press and lead weights bearing the name "Geba"

Aqueduct

See also

References