The Negev Highland Settlements and their Agricultural Hinterland in the Byzantine Period

A summary of the most recent data on the Negev settlements in the Byzantine period and the agricultural systems which developed around them.

This volume is the result of ongoing research; it seeks to present a summary of the most recent data on the Negev settlements in the Byzantine period and the agricultural systems which developed around them.

The geographical framework of the study was determined by the layout of the settlements in the northwestern Negev. The area is bordered by craters to the east and south, Be'er Sheva' and the Ḥaluẓa sand fields to the north, and the 'Agur sand fields to the west. The Byzantine period was chosen as the chronological framework, beginning with the rise to power of Constantine in 324 CE.

The authors refer to the main settlement sites in the north of the Negev Highlands: Mamshit, the Yeroḥam Fortress, 'Avedat, Shivta, Sa'adon, Reḥovot-in-the-Negev and Niẓẓana. The research also includes a renewed look at the two urban settlements in the Negev: Ḥaluẓa and Be'er Sheva'.

The first part of the book includes two sections: the geography and geology of the Negev, by N. Wieler, and the historical-epigraphic background, by O. Pogorelsky. The second part is devoted to the large settlements of the Negev and the agricultural systems around them, and to the two main cities in the region. The chapters of this part are based on the mapping of the settlements and the agricultural systems around them. This constitutes the main body of the work. With the exception of Be'er Sheva' (written by N.D. Michael), the remaining chapters were written by the authors. In each chapter, the history of the settlement and its research was compiled by N. Shemesh. The field study and mapping were written by O. Sion and edited by O. Sion and Y. Tepper.

In the third part of the book, four new studies are introduced that are published here for the first time. The first one, by T. Erickson-Gini and Y. Rapuano, discusses the ceramic forms at the transition from the Byzantine to the Early Islamic period. The second, by B. Callegher, deals with the Byzantine coins from the major settlements of the Negev. The third, by R. Shoeff and R. Linn, deals with conservation issues in three of the Negev settlements: Niẓẓana, Shivta and 'Avedat. The fourth focuses on the roads and transit routes between the settlements and was written jointly by O. Sion, Y. Tepper, and N. Wieler.