Shlomit Bechar
Biographic Data
| ID | 1723830 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Shlomit Bechar |
| GIVEN NAMES | Shlomit |
| FAMILY NAME | Bechar |
| SIGNATURE | BECHAR S |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Haifa |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-8896-2241 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 17 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 36 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 17 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2007 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 4 |
The Middle Bronze I Foundation of Hazor
This article reexamines the chronology and urban development of Hazor during the Middle Bronze Age (MBA), on the basis of earlier excavations and publications. Traditionally, following Yadin’s and Ben-Tor’s interpretations, Hazor’s fortifications and urban expansion were attributed solely to MBII, and the preceding MBI phase was regarded as ephemeral or ‘embryonic’. However, a reassessment of the published ceramic assemblages from the Standing St…
An Intermediate Bronze Age Bead Assemblage from a Burial Cave at Givʿat Reḥelim (Tell es-Safa) in Northern Israel
Givʿat Reḥelim (Tell es-Safa) is located on the outskirts of Kibbutz Ayyelet HaShaḥar, in the southern part of the Hula Valley, in the northern part of modern-day Israel. About 50 caves were surveyed on the hill, including several intact burial caves dating to the Intermediate Bronze Age. A small excavation in one of the caves exposed a rich funerary assemblage, including dozens of beads made of carnelian, faience, red coral, and stone. Some of t…
Challenging Conceptions
The northernmost part of Tel Hazor’s lower city, Area H, was first excavated nearly seventy years ago, revealing the remarkable Orthostat Temple. Despite its significance, this area was not investigated further until 2023, when excavations were renewed to reassess its stratigraphy and settlement patterns. Our findings challenge previous assumptions regarding the extent and settlement density of the Late Bronze Age city at Hazor. Contrary to earli…
Ramat Razim, near Ẓefat
An archaeological excavation carried out at Ramat Razim, near Ẓefat, exposed a Middle Bronze Age rural settlement, dated by the ceramic assemblage within Middle Bronze Age II–III. Spatial analysis identified communal workspaces and possible domestic cult practices in specific rooms, and the distribution of the ground stone tools and ceramic storage vessels reflected food-processing activities and a decentralized grain-storage approach. In additio…
The Practice of Canaanite Cult. The Middle and Late Bronze Ages
Storage Vessels as Indicators of Crisis Management
This article assesses the distribution of storage vessels, pithoi and jars in an effort to evaluate surplus management strategies connected to political and environmental conditions in the southern Levant in the second millennium BCE. We examined 27 ceramic assemblages from four Middle Bronze–Late Bronze sites in northern Israel: two rural sites (Tel Qashish and Tel Yoqneʾam) and two urban centres (Tel Hazor and Tel Beth-Shean). We then examined …
Absolute chronology of Black Wheel Made Ware in the southern Levant and its synchronization with the northern Levant
Black Wheel Made Ware (BWMW) is a distinguished pottery-type of the Intermediate Bronze Age (EB IV) in the Levant, a period dated to the second half of the 3rd millennium BCE. Considerable research was done both on the origin of BWMW and on how these vessels reflect inter-regional relations. This paper presents the first radiocarbon-based absolute dating of BWMW contexts, sampled from a few sites in northern Israel. These 14C dates clearly point …
Abuse, Reuse, Recycle
This paper investigates the use of basalt orthostats in Syro‐Anatolia throughout the Bronze and Iron Ages, focusing on the changes in their consumption at Hazor. Used to reflect the wealth and power of city rulers in the Middle and Late Bronze Ages, this practice continued in the Iron Age in Syro‐Anatolia, while at Hazor it stopped entirely. By applying the modern concepts of counter‐monumentality and spolia, it is suggested that, at Hazor, the o…
Hazor Eb Iii City Abandonment and Iba People Return
Tel Hazor is one of only a few sites in Israel where remains of the Intermediate Bronze Age (IBA) in the second half of the 3rd millennium BC were found on top of Early Bronze III (EB III) city remains. A probe excavation was held at Hazor in 2017 to explore the chronological relation between the EB III and the IBA occupation. The radiocarbon ( 14 C) absolute dates generated from this probe excavation show that following the EB III city demise, t…
Faunal remains from Tel Abel Beth Maacah
Hazor rulership and ritual manipulation
Hazor was unquestionably the largest Bronze Age Canaanite site, standing as an anomaly in the southern Levant in terms of its size, elaborate public architecture, special geopolitical stature and far-reaching international networks. While the site has been well established as an urban center with many temples, the use of each of Hazor’s temples and how they relate to one another remains unclear. In this study, we analyze the rituals and other act…
A Reanalysis of the Black Wheel-Made Ware of the Intermediate Bronze Age
The paper focuses on the distribution, typology and technology of Black Wheel-Made Ware (also known as “Megiddo Ware”) and presents a discussion of its origin and date. In the second half of the third millennium BCE the southern Levant witnessed a radical change in settlement pattern, nature of sites and material-culture assemblages. One of the features defining this period was the regionalism in the ceramic repertoire. Despite varying opinions r…
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…
Who Is Afraid of Evaluation? Ethics in Evaluation Research as a Way to Cope With Excessive Evaluation Anxiety
In this paper we share our reflections, as evaluators, on an evaluation where we encountered Excessive Evaluation Anxiety (XEA). The signs of XEA which we discerned were particularly evident amongst the program head and staff who were part of a new training program. We present our insights on the evaluation process and its difficulties, as well as our suggestions for coping with them. We suggest that signs of XEA and its consequences can be reduc…
Tel Hazor
School organisational efforts in search for alternatives to ability grouping
Collaborative Evaluation Research
Hazor rulership and ritual manipulation
Hazor was unquestionably the largest Bronze Age Canaanite site, standing as an anomaly in the southern Levant in terms of its size, elaborate public architecture, special geopolitical stature and far-reaching international networks. While the site has been well established as an urban center with many temples, the use of each of Hazor’s temples and how they relate to one another remains unclear. In this study, we analyze the rituals and other act…
A Reanalysis of the Black Wheel-Made Ware of the Intermediate Bronze Age
The paper focuses on the distribution, typology and technology of Black Wheel-Made Ware (also known as “Megiddo Ware”) and presents a discussion of its origin and date. In the second half of the third millennium BCE the southern Levant witnessed a radical change in settlement pattern, nature of sites and material-culture assemblages. One of the features defining this period was the regionalism in the ceramic repertoire. Despite varying opinions r…
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…
School organisational efforts in search for alternatives to ability grouping
Tel Hazor
Abuse, Reuse, Recycle
This paper investigates the use of basalt orthostats in Syro‐Anatolia throughout the Bronze and Iron Ages, focusing on the changes in their consumption at Hazor. Used to reflect the wealth and power of city rulers in the Middle and Late Bronze Ages, this practice continued in the Iron Age in Syro‐Anatolia, while at Hazor it stopped entirely. By applying the modern concepts of counter‐monumentality and spolia, it is suggested that, at Hazor, the o…
Hazor Eb Iii City Abandonment and Iba People Return
Tel Hazor is one of only a few sites in Israel where remains of the Intermediate Bronze Age (IBA) in the second half of the 3rd millennium BC were found on top of Early Bronze III (EB III) city remains. A probe excavation was held at Hazor in 2017 to explore the chronological relation between the EB III and the IBA occupation. The radiocarbon ( 14 C) absolute dates generated from this probe excavation show that following the EB III city demise, t…
Who Is Afraid of Evaluation? Ethics in Evaluation Research as a Way to Cope With Excessive Evaluation Anxiety
In this paper we share our reflections, as evaluators, on an evaluation where we encountered Excessive Evaluation Anxiety (XEA). The signs of XEA which we discerned were particularly evident amongst the program head and staff who were part of a new training program. We present our insights on the evaluation process and its difficulties, as well as our suggestions for coping with them. We suggest that signs of XEA and its consequences can be reduc…
Faunal remains from Tel Abel Beth Maacah
Collaborative Evaluation Research
School organisational efforts in search for alternatives to ability grouping
Who Is Afraid of Evaluation? Ethics in Evaluation Research as a Way to Cope With Excessive Evaluation Anxiety
In this paper we share our reflections, as evaluators, on an evaluation where we encountered Excessive Evaluation Anxiety (XEA). The signs of XEA which we discerned were particularly evident amongst the program head and staff who were part of a new training program. We present our insights on the evaluation process and its difficulties, as well as our suggestions for coping with them. We suggest that signs of XEA and its consequences can be reduc…
Tel Hazor
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…
A Reanalysis of the Black Wheel-Made Ware of the Intermediate Bronze Age
The paper focuses on the distribution, typology and technology of Black Wheel-Made Ware (also known as “Megiddo Ware”) and presents a discussion of its origin and date. In the second half of the third millennium BCE the southern Levant witnessed a radical change in settlement pattern, nature of sites and material-culture assemblages. One of the features defining this period was the regionalism in the ceramic repertoire. Despite varying opinions r…
Faunal remains from Tel Abel Beth Maacah
Hazor rulership and ritual manipulation
Hazor was unquestionably the largest Bronze Age Canaanite site, standing as an anomaly in the southern Levant in terms of its size, elaborate public architecture, special geopolitical stature and far-reaching international networks. While the site has been well established as an urban center with many temples, the use of each of Hazor’s temples and how they relate to one another remains unclear. In this study, we analyze the rituals and other act…
Absolute chronology of Black Wheel Made Ware in the southern Levant and its synchronization with the northern Levant
Black Wheel Made Ware (BWMW) is a distinguished pottery-type of the Intermediate Bronze Age (EB IV) in the Levant, a period dated to the second half of the 3rd millennium BCE. Considerable research was done both on the origin of BWMW and on how these vessels reflect inter-regional relations. This paper presents the first radiocarbon-based absolute dating of BWMW contexts, sampled from a few sites in northern Israel. These 14C dates clearly point …
Abuse, Reuse, Recycle
This paper investigates the use of basalt orthostats in Syro‐Anatolia throughout the Bronze and Iron Ages, focusing on the changes in their consumption at Hazor. Used to reflect the wealth and power of city rulers in the Middle and Late Bronze Ages, this practice continued in the Iron Age in Syro‐Anatolia, while at Hazor it stopped entirely. By applying the modern concepts of counter‐monumentality and spolia, it is suggested that, at Hazor, the o…
Hazor Eb Iii City Abandonment and Iba People Return
Tel Hazor is one of only a few sites in Israel where remains of the Intermediate Bronze Age (IBA) in the second half of the 3rd millennium BC were found on top of Early Bronze III (EB III) city remains. A probe excavation was held at Hazor in 2017 to explore the chronological relation between the EB III and the IBA occupation. The radiocarbon ( 14 C) absolute dates generated from this probe excavation show that following the EB III city demise, t…
Storage Vessels as Indicators of Crisis Management
This article assesses the distribution of storage vessels, pithoi and jars in an effort to evaluate surplus management strategies connected to political and environmental conditions in the southern Levant in the second millennium BCE. We examined 27 ceramic assemblages from four Middle Bronze–Late Bronze sites in northern Israel: two rural sites (Tel Qashish and Tel Yoqneʾam) and two urban centres (Tel Hazor and Tel Beth-Shean). We then examined …
The Practice of Canaanite Cult. The Middle and Late Bronze Ages
Ramat Razim, near Ẓefat
An archaeological excavation carried out at Ramat Razim, near Ẓefat, exposed a Middle Bronze Age rural settlement, dated by the ceramic assemblage within Middle Bronze Age II–III. Spatial analysis identified communal workspaces and possible domestic cult practices in specific rooms, and the distribution of the ground stone tools and ceramic storage vessels reflected food-processing activities and a decentralized grain-storage approach. In additio…
An Intermediate Bronze Age Bead Assemblage from a Burial Cave at Givʿat Reḥelim (Tell es-Safa) in Northern Israel
Givʿat Reḥelim (Tell es-Safa) is located on the outskirts of Kibbutz Ayyelet HaShaḥar, in the southern part of the Hula Valley, in the northern part of modern-day Israel. About 50 caves were surveyed on the hill, including several intact burial caves dating to the Intermediate Bronze Age. A small excavation in one of the caves exposed a rich funerary assemblage, including dozens of beads made of carnelian, faience, red coral, and stone. Some of t…
Challenging Conceptions
The northernmost part of Tel Hazor’s lower city, Area H, was first excavated nearly seventy years ago, revealing the remarkable Orthostat Temple. Despite its significance, this area was not investigated further until 2023, when excavations were renewed to reassess its stratigraphy and settlement patterns. Our findings challenge previous assumptions regarding the extent and settlement density of the Late Bronze Age city at Hazor. Contrary to earli…
The Middle Bronze I Foundation of Hazor
This article reexamines the chronology and urban development of Hazor during the Middle Bronze Age (MBA), on the basis of earlier excavations and publications. Traditionally, following Yadin’s and Ben-Tor’s interpretations, Hazor’s fortifications and urban expansion were attributed solely to MBII, and the preceding MBI phase was regarded as ephemeral or ‘embryonic’. However, a reassessment of the published ceramic assemblages from the Standing St…
Archaeology (12 works) · Archaeology and Historical Studies (12 works) · Bronze Age (12 works) · Ancient history (11 works) · History (11 works) · Bronze (9 works) · Ancient Egypt and Archaeology (8 works) · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies (8 works) · Geography (8 works) · History (5 works)