Season 5

2007

The 5th season of the Ein Gedi Oasis Excavations

The 5th season of excavations in the Second Temple Period village of Ein Gedi lasted for four weeks in

January, 2007. Volunteers from abroad and Israel took part in the excavation, as well as a few members of

Young Judea. Donations from private individuals, various funds and the Dead Sea Research and Study

Institute financed the excavations.

It was an exciting dig this year, and important goals were achieved. The overall plan of the village has

become much clearer.

 Before the season began, a JCB tractor was called in to remove the extra layer of soil which had covered

the village during the recent runoff flooding.

This season, we finished uncovering most of the Key Building, started revealing a new building to the south

of it, and found the lane in between the row of buildings and the Zukim house.

We uncovered the entrance to the Key Building, and two courtyards. In the front yard - the eastern one – we

found a small room, and next to it a large stone basin that may have been used as an animal trough.

Remains of an oven and a stove made of clay were found close to the courtyard walls. In the back yard -

the western one - remains of an oven and a basalt working table were found, as well as ash and

charcoaled wood remains which probably belonged to a shed or roofing.

In the Jars Room, we finished clearing and gathering the shattered jars that had remained from the

previous season. While removing the dirt from the runoff topsoil layer, part of a small pool was found

almost on top of that layer.

In the new Southern Building, only two rooms were found, ruined by fire; their floors were covered with ash,

charcoaled wood remains and some iron nails. Various vessels were found on the floor of the eastern

room, including two soft limestone basins, a small leaden anchor and a large jar partly sunken in the floor.

A small cylinder-shaped vessel and shattered clay jars were also found there.

The floor of the Zukim House is still in the process of being slowly peeled layer by layer.  Shattered clay

jars were found there, and also a small juglet and an almost complete stone measuring cup.

This season we continued excavating two squares which had been untouched since the 1st season,

between the western side of the Zukim House and the Pebbled Building. Now it is clear that the northern

wall of the Zukim House continues westward until it meets another wall that was built from north to south,

creating a lane of about 2 m. wide. The north-south lane connects the two parts of the village, which until

now had seemed disconnected from one another. This is one of the important finds of the season. In this

area of the site, an imported jar made of eastern Terra Sigilata was found for the first time in the

excavation. Not far away, a complete grey clay oil-lamp made from a mould was found. Flowers and vine

bunches decorate the lamp’s shoulders and an elongated leaf design appears on its nozzle.

Some progress was achieved in the North-Western Building where a very long room, approximately 10 m.

in length, was excavated. South of it, three rooms of the South-Western Building were revealed under the

runoff flood layer.

This season some conservation took place, such as strengthening the western wall of the Northern

Building that was damaged by runoff water in April, 2006. Also, the cooking installations uncovered in the

previous seasons were now filled with dirt, to prevent them from deteriorating.

We found complete clay and stone vessels and one imported jar, as well as about 100 coins.

We expect to continue uncovering the whole Southern Building, and revealing the entire layout of the

village next year.