POTENZIALITÀ E NUOVE PROSPETTIVE D’INDAGINE NELLA SAMARIA MERIDIONALE: LA MISSIONE ARCHEOLOGICA CONGIUNTA MOTA-DACH - SAPIENZA A TELL ABU ZARAD

Abstract

A new agreement on cooperation for the archaeological exploration, cultural and tourist enhancement of
Tell Sheikh Abu Zarad, in central Palestine, was signed in April 2015 by Rome Sapienza University and the
Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities of Palestine. Two seasons of archaeological investigation conducted in
the spring and fall of 2015 shed new light on this ancient mound, one of the pre-classical cities in the heartland
of the country. A GIS spatial survey of the tell and its immediate surroundings, as well as a systematic
collection of surface-collected pottery, allowed to reconstruct the ancient landscape of the site and propose
a topographical analysis of the site, as well as a provisional timeline of its occupation from the Early Bronze
Age to the Ottoman period. By a preliminary examination, Tell Abu Zarad achieved the urban status in the
Middle Bronze II-III and Iron I-II.