Naama Yahalom‐mack
Biographic Data
| ID | 3579699 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Naama Yahalom‐mack |
| GIVEN NAMES | Naama |
| FAMILY NAME | Yahalom‐mack |
| SIGNATURE | MACK N Y |
| AFFILIATIONS | Hebrew University of Jerusalem |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-9296-8435 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 43 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 294 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 43 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2006 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 7 |
Mediterranean Late Bronze Age copper ingots
Within the dynamic exchange networks of the Mediterranean Late Bronze Age, copper ingots are central to reconstructing the scale, organization, and intensity of economic and cultural contact. Yet, whether Late Bronze Age copper ingots derived from a single copper source or were mixed among sources has remained largely unresolved, obscuring their provenance. This study re-examines the extensive corpus of lead isotope data from 752 copper ingots re…
Aegean-anatolian metals in the Hellenistic Southern Levant
This study presents the results of an archaeometallurgical investigation of copper-based objects from Khirbet el-‘Eika, a fortified rural estate in the Hellenistic Galilee. Compositional analysis of 27 objects reveals that the site’s metal stock primarily consisted of tin-bronze, and leaded bronze alloys, supplemented with unalloyed copper and a single gunmetal ring. Lead isotope analysis demonstrates that the majority of copper-based objects con…
The Development of Tin Bronze in the Southern Levant during the Bronze Age
The paper surveys the development of the use of tin bronze in the Southern Levant, outlining its emergence in the late Early Bronze Age until its eventual predominance in the Late Bronze Age. As there are no tin or arsenical copper sources in the region, the paper discusses the potential sources based on archaeological and textual evidence, including recent analytical data, reflecting a possible correlation between the changes in metal sources an…
One Thousand Years of Mediterranean Silver Trade to the Levant
Silver exchanged by weight for its intrinsic value was the most important measure of value and means of payment in the southern Levant, starting from the Middle Bronze Age II–III through the Iron Age (~1700/1650‒600 BC). Since silver is not available locally in the Levant, its ongoing use as currency in the region triggered long-distance trade initiatives, and its availability or lack thereof had a direct impact on the economy. The continued use …
Copper for the early oxhide ingots
Middle Bronze Age copper smelting in the Wadi Arabah
A Unique Iron I Installation with a Double Basin and Drain from Tel Abel Beth Maacah
A Faience Head of a Bearded Male From Tel Abel Beth Maacah
A faience head depicting a bearded male was unearthed in a ninth‐century BC context at Tel Abel Beth Maacah, located on the modern Israel‐Lebanese border. During the Iron Age, the site was at the interface between the kingdoms of Israel and Aram‐Damascus and the Phoenician city‐states of Tyre and Sidon. The article discusses the object’s iconography, style, composition and manufacturing technology in comparison to other faience heads, as well as …
New evidence for long-distance trade in arsenical copper during the Early Bronze Age in the southern Levant
The paper presents new data regarding trade in metals during Early Bronze IB. Using chemical and lead isotope analysis of weapons from Early Bronze Age IB burials from the Nesher Ramla Quarry, located in the Shephelah (piedmont) bordering the Judean foothills, it is shown that complex metals were likely procured from eastern Anatolia. These data join similar analytic results regarding several artefacts from the Kfar Monash hoard and evidence from…
“A land whose stones are iron…”—Iron ore sources in the Southern Levant
Recent discoveries of iron production remains in multiple Iron Age sites throughout the Southern Levant indicate the significance of iron production in the region during this time. However, one main question remains unanswered—that is, provenance: Where were the iron resources located? Were they local or brought from afar? Answering these questions would allow great potential for reconstructing iron-ore procurement strategies and exploitation pra…
Defining the Use of Cultic Space in the Early Iron Age
Numerous studies on the Late Bronze Age to Iron Age (IA) transition in the southern Levant have underscored how IA I (1190–980 BC) society displays evidence of both cultural continuity and discontinuity. This article investigates the role of cult in this process of transition, utilizing evidence revealed at Tel Abel Beth Maacah in the northern Hula Valley. Employing a methodology based on spatial analysis of artifacts, the article aims to establi…
Metalworking in Cultic Spaces
This article addresses the relationship between metalworking and cultic space in the Bronze Age Southern Levant, tracing the earliest evidence of metallurgical activities within Southern Levantine temples to the beginning of the Middle Bronze Age. This coincides with the appearance of a series of new cultic traditions in the region, including the large-scale dedication of votive offerings in temple settings. It is demonstrated that the local prod…
A Middle Bronze Age Assemblage of Bone Inlays from Lachish
Decorated bone inlays are among the fossiles directeurs of Middle Bronze (MB) Age II and early Late Bronze Age assemblages, having been documented since the beginning of archaeological research in the Levant. During the Fourth Expedition to Lachish, an assemblage of 49 decorated bone inlays restored from ca. 200 fragments was found in the rooms of a late MB II monumental building. The inlays were apparently used to decorate wooden boxes. Although…
How is forgery of ancient silver identified? A reply to Elsayed-Ali (2021)
The earliest silver currency hoards in the Southern Levant
From Iberia to Laurion
Metalworking at Tel Reḥov
The excavations at Tel Reḥov yielded hundreds of metal objects and numerous metallurgical remains that attest to on-site metalworking. The study of such remains and their distribution sheds light on metalworking practices at the site, indicating a considerable change between the Late Bronze Age and the Iron Age, which comprised both the choice of raw materials (bronze vs. iron), their origin, and metalworking traditions. Particularly significant …
Incised Late Bronze Age lead ingots from the southern anchorage of Caesarea
Contextualizing an Iron Age IIA Hoard of Astragali from Tel Abel Beth Maacah, Israel
Astragali, the knuckle or ankle bones of mammals, have been collected, used and modified by humans in different parts of the world for millennia. Large hoards dating from Iron Age IIA (tenth–ninth centuries BC) are attested at a number of sites in the southern Levant, and a recently discovered hoard of 406 astragali at Tel Abel Beth Maacah in northern Israel presents an opportunity to investigate this phenomenon, shedding light on the function of…
The Iron Age IIA ‘Benyaw Inscription’ on a Jar from Tel Abel Beth Maacah
During the seventh excavation season in 2019 at Tel Abel Beth Maacah, located in northern Israel, part of a well-constructed building was revealed just below topsoil in Area K. One partially excavated room in this building was found to contain at least five smashed storage jars in situ. Restoration showed that the jars are all of the same type and mode of manufacture, and one of them, with a marked handle, bears a one-word ink inscription. The st…
Perforated Astragali in the Levant and Four Babylonian Omens
Faunal remains from Tel Abel Beth Maacah
Debasement of silver throughout the Late Bronze – Iron Age transition in the Southern Levant
Combining chemical and lead isotope analyses with 3-D geometric–morphometric shape analysis
Pollution and human mobility in the southern Levant during the Iron Age using chemical and isotopic analysis of human tooth enamel
Sediments exposed to high temperatures
Iron and bronze production in Iron Age IIA Philistia
New insights into Levantine copper trade
Iron smelting and smithing in major urban centers in Israel during the Iron Age
Debasement of silver throughout the Late Bronze – Iron Age transition in the Southern Levant
Metalworking at Megiddo during the Late Bronze and Iron Ages
Previous articleNext article FreeMetalworking at Megiddo during the Late Bronze and Iron AgesNaama Yahalom-Mack, Adi Eliyahu-Behar, Mario A. S. Martin, Assaf Kleiman, Ruth Shahack-Gross, Robert S. Homsher, Yuval Gadot, and Israel FinkelsteinNaama Yahalom-MackThe Hebrew University of Jerusalem Search for more articles by this author , Adi Eliyahu-BeharBar-Ilan University Search for more articles by this author , Mario A. S. MartinTel Aviv Universi…
From Iberia to Laurion
Metalworking at H azor
The temporal and spatial distribution of metal production remains from H azor was used in this study to sketch the development of metalworking (bronze, iron and silver) at this important site. The remains attest to a long sequence of metalworking at H azor, from the M iddle B ronze A ge through to the I ron A ge, and significantly highlight the transition from bronze to iron production and the mode of bronze production after the transition had be…
The earliest silver currency hoards in the Southern Levant
Pollution and human mobility in the southern Levant during the Iron Age using chemical and isotopic analysis of human tooth enamel
The earliest Near Eastern wooden spinning implements
Combining chemical and lead isotope analyses with 3-D geometric–morphometric shape analysis
Crucibles, Tuyères, and Bellows in a Longue Durée Perspective
The article examines changes in metalworking tools during the second and early first millennia BCE as a reflection of broader cultural and political developments. It is assumed that producers who consistently choose a similar set of production actions belong to the same social and cultural group, and that technological choices are notoriously conservative. Therefore, changes in these choices are significant and could reflect broader societal deve…
Reevaluating early iron-working skills in the Southern Levant through microstructure analysis
Metalworking in Cultic Spaces
This article addresses the relationship between metalworking and cultic space in the Bronze Age Southern Levant, tracing the earliest evidence of metallurgical activities within Southern Levantine temples to the beginning of the Middle Bronze Age. This coincides with the appearance of a series of new cultic traditions in the region, including the large-scale dedication of votive offerings in temple settings. It is demonstrated that the local prod…
Contextualizing an Iron Age IIA Hoard of Astragali from Tel Abel Beth Maacah, Israel
Astragali, the knuckle or ankle bones of mammals, have been collected, used and modified by humans in different parts of the world for millennia. Large hoards dating from Iron Age IIA (tenth–ninth centuries BC) are attested at a number of sites in the southern Levant, and a recently discovered hoard of 406 astragali at Tel Abel Beth Maacah in northern Israel presents an opportunity to investigate this phenomenon, shedding light on the function of…
Perforated Astragali in the Levant and Four Babylonian Omens
From a Fortified Canaanite City-State to "a City and a Mother" in Israel
Tel Abel Beth Maacah is a prominent site on the border of Israel, Syria, and Lebanon where it occupied a strategic geopolitical niche among ancient Canaanites, Israelites, Arameans, and Phoenicians. A survey and five seasons of excavation have revealed an occupation sequence ranging from EB II until modern times with peak occupation dating to MB IIB and Iron Age I–IIA. The robust continuity in settlement from the Late Bronze Age until Iron Age II…
Faunal remains from Tel Abel Beth Maacah
Sediments exposed to high temperatures
Iron and bronze production in Iron Age IIA Philistia
Reconstructing Ancient Israel
»Vielmehr bietet [der Kommentar] auf höchstem Niveau eine substantielle Auseinandersetzung mit den Hintergründen, den Zusammenhängen, der Theorie und der Praxis des Grundgesetzes. Besseres lässt sich von einem Verfassungskommentar nicht sagen.“ Herbert Günther Staaatsanzeiger für das Land Hessen 2018 (50), 1494–1495
Iron smelting and smithing in major urban centers in Israel during the Iron Age
New insights into Levantine copper trade
Metalworking at H azor
The temporal and spatial distribution of metal production remains from H azor was used in this study to sketch the development of metalworking (bronze, iron and silver) at this important site. The remains attest to a long sequence of metalworking at H azor, from the M iddle B ronze A ge through to the I ron A ge, and significantly highlight the transition from bronze to iron production and the mode of bronze production after the transition had be…
Egyptian Bronzeworking Practices in Late Bronze Age Canaan
Recent excavations at Tel Rehov uncovered a bronzeworking smithy dated to the late 13th century b.c.e. in which a canal was used to position the crucible, as was routine practice at the contemporary site of Qantir in the Nile Delta. The identical formation technique of the tuyères at both sites suggests that the smith at Tel Rehov was well acquainted with the bronzeworking traditions used at Qantir. In light of this discovery, additional evidence…
The earliest Near Eastern wooden spinning implements
Metalworking at Megiddo during the Late Bronze and Iron Ages
Previous articleNext article FreeMetalworking at Megiddo during the Late Bronze and Iron AgesNaama Yahalom-Mack, Adi Eliyahu-Behar, Mario A. S. Martin, Assaf Kleiman, Ruth Shahack-Gross, Robert S. Homsher, Yuval Gadot, and Israel FinkelsteinNaama Yahalom-MackThe Hebrew University of Jerusalem Search for more articles by this author , Adi Eliyahu-BeharBar-Ilan University Search for more articles by this author , Mario A. S. MartinTel Aviv Universi…
On Chalcolithic maceheads and spinning implements
We are grateful to Ben-Yosefet al. (above) for their thorough critical evaluation of our recent paper. We identified a group of modified wooden shafts originating in two large complex caves with Late Chalcolithic (Ghassulian) burials in the Negev Desert (Israel) as the earliest Levantine wooden spinning implements (Langgutet al. 2016). Their detailed assessment culminated in the alternative hypothesis that the wooden objects functioned as sticks …
Four Iron Age Silver Hoards from Southern Phoenicia
Iron Age silver in the Levant has attracted scholarly attention regarding its function as currency. Scholars debate whether hacksilber can be interpreted as representing a pre-monetary economic system, using pre-portioned silver exchanged in standardized weights, which inspired the invention of coins. In this study, four Iron Age silver hoards from southern Phoenicia (Tell Keisan, Tel Dor, ʿEin Hofez, and ʿAkko) are examined from archaeological a…
Distancing the Dead
The Late Chalcolithic of the southern Levant (ca. 4500–3800 b.c.e.) is known for its extensive use of the subterranean sphere for mortuary practices. Numerous natural and hewn caves, constituting formal extramural cemeteries, were used as secondary burial localities for multiple individuals, refecting and reaffirming social order and/or communal identity and ideology. Recently, two large complex caves located in the northern Negev Highlands, sout…
Reevaluating early iron-working skills in the Southern Levant through microstructure analysis
From a Fortified Canaanite City-State to "a City and a Mother" in Israel
Tel Abel Beth Maacah is a prominent site on the border of Israel, Syria, and Lebanon where it occupied a strategic geopolitical niche among ancient Canaanites, Israelites, Arameans, and Phoenicians. A survey and five seasons of excavation have revealed an occupation sequence ranging from EB II until modern times with peak occupation dating to MB IIB and Iron Age I–IIA. The robust continuity in settlement from the Late Bronze Age until Iron Age II…
The Metal Assemblage from Early Iron Age IIA Khirbet Qeiyafa and Its Implications for the Inception of Iron Production and Use
A large metal assemblage was uncovered at the late 11th–early 10th century b.c.e. fortified town of Khirbet Qeiyafa. At this early date, iron was already used rather extensively for utilitarian purposes at the site, though bronze was not yet restricted to decorative use. The metal assemblage from Khirbet Qeiyafa, therefore, provides a rare glimpse into the transition from bronze to iron at the beginning of Iron Age II. This article presents the t…
Introduction
This special issue of JEMAHS, dealing with various aspects of ancient technology in the southern Levant, is dedicated to Nava Panitz-Cohen, our colleague and friend, on the occasion of her 60th birthday. It brings together contributions to a workshop, “In Search of Ancient Technology: A Workshop on the Occasion of Nava Panitz-Cohen's Birthday,” which took place on September 14, 2017 at the French Research Center in Jerusalem.Nava combines unique …
Crucibles, Tuyères, and Bellows in a Longue Durée Perspective
The article examines changes in metalworking tools during the second and early first millennia BCE as a reflection of broader cultural and political developments. It is assumed that producers who consistently choose a similar set of production actions belong to the same social and cultural group, and that technological choices are notoriously conservative. Therefore, changes in these choices are significant and could reflect broader societal deve…
A New Jewelry Hoard from Eleventh-Century BCE Megiddo
A jewelry hoard was recently uncovered in Megiddo in destruction debris securely dated to the Early Iron Age I. The hoard was found only about 30 m from the Canaanite palace of the city of Stratum VIIA. Three groups of objects contained in the hoard are presented: a bundle of silver objects; a necklace made of electrum, carnelian, and silver beads; and ten elaborate electrum jewelry pieces. An earring from the latter group is a work of art that h…
Faunal remains from Tel Abel Beth Maacah
Debasement of silver throughout the Late Bronze – Iron Age transition in the Southern Levant
Combining chemical and lead isotope analyses with 3-D geometric–morphometric shape analysis
Pollution and human mobility in the southern Levant during the Iron Age using chemical and isotopic analysis of human tooth enamel
Incised Late Bronze Age lead ingots from the southern anchorage of Caesarea
Contextualizing an Iron Age IIA Hoard of Astragali from Tel Abel Beth Maacah, Israel
Astragali, the knuckle or ankle bones of mammals, have been collected, used and modified by humans in different parts of the world for millennia. Large hoards dating from Iron Age IIA (tenth–ninth centuries BC) are attested at a number of sites in the southern Levant, and a recently discovered hoard of 406 astragali at Tel Abel Beth Maacah in northern Israel presents an opportunity to investigate this phenomenon, shedding light on the function of…
The Iron Age IIA ‘Benyaw Inscription’ on a Jar from Tel Abel Beth Maacah
During the seventh excavation season in 2019 at Tel Abel Beth Maacah, located in northern Israel, part of a well-constructed building was revealed just below topsoil in Area K. One partially excavated room in this building was found to contain at least five smashed storage jars in situ. Restoration showed that the jars are all of the same type and mode of manufacture, and one of them, with a marked handle, bears a one-word ink inscription. The st…
Archaeology (38 works) · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies (29 works) · History (29 works) · Archaeology and Historical Studies (27 works) · Ancient history (26 works) · Geography (26 works) · Bronze Age (24 works) · Bronze (20 works) · History (18 works) · Ancient Near East History (14 works)