Tzur Natan
Tzur Natan is a moshav shitufi in central Israel. Located in western Samaria on a hilltop 170 m above sea level, on a ridge in the foothills of the Samarian Hills and to the south of Tayibe, it falls under the jurisdiction of Drom HaSharon Regional Council. In it had a population of.
History
The moshav was founded in 1966 as a Nahal settlement by Hashomer Hatzair members, and was named after Nathan Simons. It was civilianised a year later by former members of the Beitar youth group.In 2017 a minority of Tzur Natan families agreed to sell their land to a natural gas and diesel power station to be constructed by Edeltech only meters from the Arab Israeli city of Tira.
Archaeology
Excavations at Tzur Natan between 1989 and 1994 revealed a large Byzantine-period complex identified as a Samaritan synagogue. The building, oriented toward Mount Gerizim, included a main hall with an apse, narthex, atrium, and benches along the side walls, as well as several miqva'ot. Finds such as a menorah engraving on a basalt stone and oil lamps decorated with menorahs, together with literary evidence for a Samaritan presence in the area in the 5th century CE, led the excavators to attribute the synagogue to the Samaritans.A dedicatory mosaic by the entrance mentions the village of Antesion, thought to be the ancient name of the site. A coin of Justin II found in the fill dates the synagogue to the late 6th century. The building appears to have been converted into a church before its final abandonment in the 8th century. To the west, excavators uncovered more than twenty rooms with oil presses, flour mills, and a wine press, which they interpreted as an agricultural and industrial complex belonging to the Samaritan community.
In 2019 a 5th-century mosaic with Greek inscription found at an ancient wine press. The inscription reads, "Only God help the beautiful property of Master Adios, amen." Adios was a wealthy Samaritan landowner.