Shimron
Tel Shimron is an archaeological site and nature reserve in the Jezreel Valley. Since 2016 the site is being excavated in cooperation with the Jezreel Valley Regional Project.
Shimron was a major city in the north of Israel mentioned in the Hebrew Bible. In Late Antiquity, it was known as Simonias, as attested to by Flavius Josephus. The Arabic name of the site is Tell Sammunia, also written Semmunieh or Semmoune.
Tel Shimron is located on the western edge of the Nazareth range at the intersection of the Lower Galilee and the Jezreel Valley. The location, particularly due to its proximity to the Acre Plain, made it an important trade route.
Surveys and excavations
Guérin, 1875
In 1875, Victor Guérin wrote of Shimron:"The present village has succeeded a small ancient city, now completely destroyed. East of the site which it occupied rises a round isolated hill, which commands the plain in every direction, and was once surrounded on its summit by a wall, of which a few traces still remain. This hill must probably have been fortified. Scarped towards the east, it slopes gently on the western side towards the town, which covered the lower hillocks at its feet. Among them I found, in the midst of the various debris which cover the soil, the remains of a building in cut stone, completely overthrown, once ornamented by columns, as is attested by two mutilated shafts lying on the spot. This edifice seems to have been constructed from east to west, so that it may have been a Christian church.
"In another place I saw an enclosure measuring thirty-five paces in length by twenty-five in breadth. From a distance it appears ancient. It is, however, of modern date, constructed of stones of all sizes and shapes; among them pillars of broken sarcophagi".
1982 survey
In 1982 the site was surveyed by Yuval Portugali and Avner Raban. Their finds included several tombs dating to the Middle Bronze II, Persian, Hellenistic, and Roman Periods, but Chalcolithic and Early Bronze I remains were discovered around the site, as well as evidence of Neolithic activity in the surrounding area.IAA excavations (2004-2010)
In 2004, 2008 and 2010, salvage excavations were conducted adjacent to Tel Shimron by Nurit Feig and Yardenna Alexandre on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority.2004 excavation
Nurit Feig directed a salvage excavation on behalf of the IAA prior to the installation of electrical poles at the Bet Zarzir-Nahalal Junction road. Four squares were excavated, three of which were situated along the shoulder of the road, and the fourth was 200m to the west.2008 excavation
Feig conducted another IAA salvage dig prior to the construction of agricultural buildings. This excavation found several smaller walls and potsherds dating to the Early and Middle Bronze Ages as well as the Roman Period. Flint remains dated to the Neolithic as well as the Early Bronze Age.2010 excavation
Another salvage excavation was conducted on behalf of the IAA, this time by Yardenna Alexandre near the Nahalal junction ahead of a widening of Highway 75. A rural settlement dating to the Middle Bronze Age was uncovered along with Roman remains.Tel Shimron Excavations (2016-)
In 2016, research began on the tel itself. The project is co-directed by Daniel M. Master and Mario A. S. Martin on behalf of the Institute of Archaeology at Tel Aviv University and Wheaton College, IL. This survey reached similar conclusions to the earlier work by Portugali and Raban. Middle Bronze Age remains were found close to the surface, and later periods were mostly represented at the center of the mound. However, ground-penetrating radar and magnetometry assays revealed strata from later periods overlaying the MB strata in certain areas, which led to the excavations of 2017 and 2019.The first five years of excavation uncovered remains from the Middle Bronze Age and Iron Age as well as the Persian, Hellenistic, Roman, and Mamluk periods.
In 2023, excavators uncovered a mudbrick passageway with a corbelled arched roof, the first of its kind to be found in the southern Levant. While excavating the entrance to the passageway, the team found a "Nahariya bowl", a seven-cupped vessel which is thought to have had ritual function. In November 2024, archaeologists revealed the discovery of a monumental structure containing a large cache of rare cultic objects used by the Canaanites 3,800 years ago.
History and archaeology
Neolithic
Very little Neolithic material has been found at Tel Shimron, but during the 2010 excavation, a Pre-Pottery Neolithic B arrowhead as well as remains of the Wadi Rabah culture were discovered.Chalcolithic
Sparse evidence of the Ghassulian Culture of the Chalcolithic period was uncovered during the 2010 Excavation.Early Bronze Age
Due to Middle Bronze remains that lie atop the Early Bronze strata, it is difficult to gain a detailed picture of the Early Bronze Age at Shimron. Surveys have suggested the site was first settled in the EB I, and there was a gap in settlement during EB III.Middle Bronze Age
At its largest, Tel Shimron consisted of 19.5 hectares during the Middle Bronze Age. The site is mentioned in MB I Execration Texts, and its size and location suggest that it was an important inland city in the interconnected trade network of growing ports and the Jezreel Valley trade route. A cylinder seal found, dating to the MB II, further attests the international nature of Shimron as a site along an important trade route during the MB. In general, Shimron is part of a larger trend of booming urbanism and fortification as well as international trade during the MB.The juxtaposition of domestic activity in the lower city and monumental buildings on the acropolis provides an intriguing case of status differences in the Middle Bronze Age.
Lower city
In the southwest corner of the site, Middle Bronze Age domestic buildings were excavated. Evidence of daily life in the Middle Bronze Age was found in the houses, including craft industries like metal working.Acropolis
On the acropolis of the site, to the east, monumental Middle Bronze Age remains were discovered. While the pottery in this area is similar chronologically to that of the lower city domestic area, the quality and forms are different. For example, several whole and fragmented Nahariya bowls were found This area additionally contained a massive mudbrick corbelled passageway that was also discovered.Cylinder seal
A cylinder seal dating to the 17th century BCE, or the Middle Bronze Age II, was discovered at Tel Shimron during the 2017 season. Made of hematite in the Old Syrian Classic style, it measures 1.5 cm in length and 8.5 cm in width with a 2.5 mm diameter hole. The seal depicts a sphinx and lion fighting over a human and stag, with two vultures, a sun and crescent shape depicted over the fight. In addition, a hare and a bull's head are pictured to either side. The depictions draw on influences from Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Northern Syria, showing the international nature of the site in the 17th century.Late Bronze Age
While surveys indicate that Shimron shrunk somewhat in the middle of the second millennium, the Amarna Letters attest that it was still an important royal city in northern Canaan. In EA 225 EA 261, and EA 224, Šammu-Hadi, king of Shimron, is shown as a vassal to the Egyptian pharaoh. EA 224 seems to indicate that part of the local economy of Shimron was grain production, some of which went to support nearby Egyptian garrisons; however, EA 8 indicates otherwise. Burraburiyash of Babylon complains to the pharaoh that Šum-Hadda, most likely the same ruler of Shimron mentioned in the other letters, and Sutana of Acco raided one of his caravans. This text not only indicates the location of Shimron along an important trade route, but its alliances with western powers like Acco, which is supported by Cypriot material found at the site.Iron Age
Iron Age remains were found in a silo cut into the Bronze Age fortifications. While the 2019 excavation did not allow for rigorous investigation of the Iron Age remains, the assemblage found in the silo is similar to that of Megiddo VI, which indicates a "Canaanite" population in the lowlands in the Iron Age I. A bronze bracelet and electrum sheeting were also found here.The exact political and social orientation of Tel Shimron during the Iron Age is unclear. According to Joshua 11, the king of Shimron was part of an alliance with the king of Hazor, which was defeated by Joshua. Joshua 19:15 places Shimron inside the allotment of the Tribe of Zebulun.
Assyrian destruction
During the 8th century BC, it is possible that Shimron was destroyed by Tiglath Pileser III. In a fragment of his annals, different cities taken by the Assyrians are recorded. One such site, although the list is badly broken, has been restored as Samhuna, which Nadav Na'aman and others have associated with Shimron.Tiglath Pileser III performed massive deportations in the Jezreel and Lower Galilee during the 8th century, and surveys in the area suggest it remained sparsely populated for centuries.
Persian period
In the Persian period use of the site resumed. The 2004 salvage excavation uncovered a Persian-period building that likely served a public function, which could indicate that Shimron had an administrative role in the area.Hellenistic period
Finds from the Hellenistic period indicate substantial occupation during both the Ptolemaic and Seleucid eras. It is unclear, however, if the site was occupied after the withdrawal of Seleucid rule in the middle of the second century.Feig's 2008 excavation uncovered a coin, which was likely struck in the Ashkelon Mint during the Ptolemaic Period.
Excavations on the western side of the site revealed a hoard of coins from the reign of Antiochus III, just at the moment when this region moved from Ptolemaic to Seleucid rule. There were also coins of Demetrius II; after which the site was abandoned.