Qedesh in the Galilee is one of the largest biblical sites in northern Israel. First settled during the Chalcolithic period, the site reached its peak during the Early Bronze Age, when an enormous site (ca. 60 hectares), extending well beyond the main mound, emerged during this crucial phase of early Levantine urbanism. A Canaanite city continued to thrive on the mound during the second millennium BCE, to be followed by an important Israelite center during the Iron Age II known as one of the Refuge and Levite Cities (Joshua 20:7; 21:32). Following its conquest by the Assyrian King Tiglath Pileser III in 732 BCE (2 Kings 15:29), it re-emerged as a Phoenician administrative center during the Persian and Hellenistic periods, and later became an important pagan town on the boundary between Tyre and the Jewish Galilee during the Second Temple period (BJ 3:35-40). A rural cultic center, housing two temples and numerous mausolea (elaborate burial monuments), developed here in the Late Roman period, and an important market town is attested during the Early Islamic period. A Shi'a village by the name of Qadas occupied part of the mound in the last centuries, and was abandoned in the aftermath of the 1948 War. The site that was a major cultural, economic and political hub for more than five millennia is now nestled peacefully in the quiet, green scenery of the Upper Galilee of Israel, waiting for archaeologists to uncover its treasures.

The HUJI Expedition to Qedesh in the Galilee was founded in 2016, following two years of high-resolution survey conducted at the site by Ido Wachtel and Roi Sabar. The expedition, headed by Uri Davidovich and Ido Wachtel, is currently focusing on the excavation of the Early Bronze Age fortified quarter of 'Qedesh West', where two excavation areas examine domestic structures (Area B1) and the outer fortification system (Area C1), both dated primarily to EB II (ca. 3050-2850 BCE). In 2016-2017 the excavations included a small area on the upper mound (Area A1), within the ruined village of Qadas, where a Roman-period monumental structure (a temple?) was investigated by Roi Sabar. Recently, a new research program in historical archaeology, focusing on the Arab village and its ruination process, was established in collaboration with scholars from HUJI, Tel Aviv University, University of Durham and the Open University. This joint project began excavations in the southern part of the village (Area QV) and in the spring house below the mound (Area QS) in 2021.

For more information visit the Tel Qedesh webpage, where you can also apply for participation in the next field season of excavations.

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