Khirbet Beit Ta'Mar : an archaeological, historical and architectural study

Abstract EN

Khirbet Beit Ta'mar is located approximately 4 km southeast of Bethlehem, and about 1.

5 km to the north of the Herodion archaeological site.

Based on the literature written by travelers and historians, as well as on the archaeological survey carried out by the author in 2014, the settlement history of the site dates back to the Roman period and continued without interruption until recent times.

The surveyed archaeological features include ground graves, several olive- and wine-presses, cisterns, and subterranean tombs, all cut into the natural limestone bedrock.

Also, the site includes an mosque which is still in use; this mosque was built in the year 636 AD and is known as the Omari Mosque after the Caliph Omar Ibn al-Khattab.

Furthermore, several traditional buildings from the Mamluk and Ottoman periods, in use until the middle of the last century, were documented.

In addition, the khirbet includes some natural caves that were used by people who lived on the site until the late 20th century for sheltering their animals and the storage of agricultural products.

Over the past few decades, a large part of the khirbet, in several different areas, has been subjected to serious damage and destruction by various means: antiquities looting; urban development construction, including residential structures and roads; and by the burying of the recently deceased of the village in the cemetery located within this archaeological site.