Tel Megiddo
Tel Megiddo (from Hebrew: תל מגידו), called in Arabic Tell el-Mutesellim, 'Mound of the Governor', is the site of the ancient city of Megiddo (Greek: Μεγιδδώ), the remains of which form a tell (archaeological mound), situated in northern Israel near Kibbutz Megiddo, about 30 kilometres (19 mi) south-east of Haifa, at the western edge of the Jezreel Valley. Megiddo is known for its historical, geographical, and theological importance, especially under its Greek name Armageddon. During the Bronze Age, Megiddo was an important Canaanite city-state. During the Iron Age, it was a royal city in the Kingdom of Israel.
Alternative name
Tell el-Mutesellim
Near Kibbutz Megiddo, Israel
Settlement
350 BCE
Biblical Tells – Megiddo, Hazor, Beer Sheba
Cultural
ii, iii, iv, vi
2005 (29th session)
Megiddo drew much of its importance from its strategic location at the northern end of the Wadi Ara defile, which acts as a pass through the Carmel Ridge, and from its position overlooking the rich Jezreel Valley from the west.
Excavations have unearthed 20 strata of ruins since the Neolithic phase, indicating a long period of settlement.[1] The site is protected as Megiddo National Park and is a World Heritage Site.[2]
Etymology[edit]
Megiddo was known in the Akkadian language used in Assyria as Magiddu, Magaddu. In Egyptian, it was Maketi, Makitu, and Makedo. In the Canaanite-influenced Akkadian used in the Amarna tablets, it was known as Magidda and Makida.
Greek: Μαγεδών/Μαγεδδώ, Magedón/Mageddó in the Septuagint.[3][4][5] Latin: Mageddo in the Vulgate.[6]
The Book of Revelation describes an apocalyptic battle at Armageddon (Revelation 16:16): Ἁρμαγεδών (Harmagedōn),[7] a Koine Greek transliteration of the Hebrew "Har Megiddo" (Mount Megiddo).[8] From this surreal appearance in a well-known eschatological text, the term "Armageddon" has come to signify any world-ending catastrophe.[9]
Famous battles include:
History of archaeological excavation[edit]
Megiddo has been excavated three times and is currently being excavated. The first excavations were carried out between 1903 and 1905 by Gottlieb Schumacher for the German Society for the Study of Palestine, excavating one main north-south trench and some subsidiary trenches and probes.[54] Techniques used were rudimentary by later standards and Schumacher's field notes and records were destroyed in World War I before being published. After the war, Carl Watzinger published the remaining available data from the dig.[55]
In 1925, digging was resumed by the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago, financed by John D. Rockefeller Jr., continuing until the outbreak of the Second World War. The work was led initially by Clarence S. Fisher, and later by P. L. O. Guy, Robert Lamon, and Gordon Loud.[56][57][58][59][60][61] The Oriental Institute intended to completely excavate the whole tel, layer by layer, but money ran out before they could do so. Today, excavators limit themselves to a square or a trench on the basis that they must leave something for future archaeologists with better techniques and methods. During these excavations it was discovered that there were around 8 levels of habitation. Many of the uncovered remains are preserved at the Rockefeller Museum in Jerusalem and the Institute for the Study of Ancient Cultures. The East Slope area of Megiddo was excavated to the bedrock to serve as a spoil area. The full results of that excavation were not published until decades later.[62]
Yigael Yadin conducted excavations in 1960, 1966, 1967, and 1971 for the Hebrew University.[63][64] The formal results of those digs were published by Anabel Zarzecki-Peleg in Hebrew University's monograph 2016 Qedem 56.[65]
Since 1994, Megiddo has been the subject of biannual excavation campaigns conducted by the Megiddo Expedition of Tel Aviv University, currently co-directed by Israel Finkelstein, David Ussishkin, and Baruch Halpern with Eric H. Cline of The George Washington University serving as associate director (USA), together with a consortium of international universities.[66][67][68][69] One notable feature of the dig is close on-site co-operation between archaeologists and specialist scientists, with detailed chemical analysis being performed at the dig itself using a field infrared spectrometer.[70]
In 2010, the Jezreel Valley Regional Project, directed by Matthew J. Adams of Bucknell University in cooperation with the Megiddo Expedition, undertook excavations of the eastern extension of the Early Bronze Age town of Megiddo, at the site known as Tel Megiddo (East).[71]