Megiddo & Tel Kabri
Our field schools in Israel are conducted in collaboration with Israeli universities. These sites enable students to conduct summer archaeological work, primarily at Bronze Age and Iron Age levels of the sites of Megiddo (even-numbered summers) and Tel Kabri (odd-numbered summers).
Questions about field sites in Israel? Contact Eric Cline.
Tel Kabri
Tel Kabri represents one of the only available opportunities in the Eastern Mediterranean to excavate a Middle Bronze Age Canaanite palace. Participants explore anthropological theories about the rise of archaic states and study political economies of the Aegean and the Near East. Researchers integrate cutting-edge technology to piece together details about how ancient populations lived in and around the palace.
To apply to Tel Kabri, please contact Professor Eric Cline at [email protected].
- Site Details
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Located in a quiet, rural setting within the western Galilee of Israel, Tel Kabri is only a ten-minute ride from the town of Nahariya, Israel, where the coastal plain meets the inland hills. Today the Tel and its surroundings are agricultural land, with lush plantations of bananas and avocados overlying the ancient remains.
The ready-available palace and settlement, with minimal overburden and with limited previous excavations, allows us to use modern methods to gain insights into some of the most important topics relevant to the understanding of complex human societies.
- About the Tel Kabri Field School
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The summer field school offers a three-credit course in methods and techniques in field archaeology through the University of Haifa, which can be transferred back to many other international institutions. The Mediterranean Field Program at Tel Kabri aims to introduce students to archaeological field experience, using the site of Tel Kabri, the western Galilee and the larger region of Israel. This course in particular will train students in the methods and techniques of modern field archaeology. The aim is to enable students to acquire and develop the skills required for proper excavation and recording. Emphasis is placed on basic field technique and strategy, stratigraphical analysis, documentation and chronological tools. In addition to site work, the field school includes a lecture component that covers related topics.
- Co-Directors
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Assaf Yasur-Landau, University of Haifa
Dr. Assaf Yasur-Landau is Head of the Department of Maritime Civilizations and a Senior Researcher at the Leon Recanati Institute of Maritime Studies at Haifa University. He has participated in many excavations and surveys since 1986 at sites in Israel, Greece, and Turkey, in capacities ranging from staff member to director. He has just published a book on the Philistines and is also publishing the imported Mycenaean pottery from Aphek, a provenance study of LH IIIC pottery from Beth Shean, Acco and Dan, and partaking in the publication of the locally-made Aegean-style pottery from Ashkelon.
Eric H. Cline, The George Washington University
Dr. Eric H. Cline is a professor of Classical and Ancient Near Eastern Studies and Director of the GWU Capitol Archaeological Institute at The George Washington University in Washington, D.C., where he also holds appointments in the Anthropology and History departments and the Judaic Studies Program. He has participated in 29 seasons of archaeological excavation and survey in Israel, Egypt, Jordan, Greece, Cyprus, and the USA since 1980. He is the author, co-author, or co-editor of fourteen books and nearly 100 articles.
- Methodology Used
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- Residue analysis
- Petrographic analysis
- Detailed zooarchaeological study
- Neutron activation analysis
- Stable isotope analysis
- High-resolution photogrammetry
- 3-D model reconstruction
- Micro-GIS
- Past Tel Kabri Seasons
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See blogs on past digs for more details and pictures.
Megiddo
An unrivaled resource in the study of biblical archaeology, Megiddo was the site of epic battles that decided the fate of western Asia. It was here that the Egyptians took their first steps toward empire building when Pharaoh Thutmose III, in the 15th century B.C.E., conquered Canaan; it was from here that Assyria staged its deportation of the people of the Northern Kingdom of Israel; and it was here that Josiah — the last righteous king of the lineage of David — was killed by Pharaoh Necho II, opening the way for centuries of messianic yearning. Visit the Megiddo Expedition blog for more details on past seasons and how to register for the next expedition.
Please note: While GW is no longer managing a Megiddo dig and GW faculty are no longer associated with the excavations, GW students are still welcome to attend digs at the consortium rate.
Site Details
Strategically perched above the most important land route in the ancient Near East, the city dominated international traffic for over 6,000 years — from ca. 7,000 B.C.E. through to biblical times. As civilizations came and went, succeeding settlements at ancient Megiddo were built on the ruins of their predecessors, creating a multi-layered archaeological legacy that abounds in unparalleled treasures that include monumental temples, lavish palaces, mighty fortifications and remarkably engineered water systems.