Khirbet Kulâsôn - Jewish Until 2nd Century

From an academic publication about a site near Shiloh:

KHIRBET KULÂSÔN – A SITE FROM THE SECOND TEMPLE PERIOD AND THE BAR-KOKHBA REVOLT IN THE TOPARCHY OF ACRABA

Eitan Klein & Boaz Zissu

Department of Land of Israel Studies and ArchaelogyBar-Ilan University

Khirbet Kulâsôn is an ancient site located in the southern desert fringe of Samaria, approximately 2 kilometers east of the Shiloh Valley and one kilometer northwest of the modern village El-Mughaiyir.

 Kulâsôn underlined in red

In early 2009, the authors conducted an archeological survey at the site on behalf of the Martin (Szusz) Department of Land of Israel Studies and Archaeology at Bar-Ilan University, after great damage was caused to the site by development works, agricultural work, and systematic illegal excavations.

This article will present the results of the archaeological survey, concentrating on remains attesting to a Jewish settlement at the site in the latter part of the Second Temple period until the days of the Bar-Kokhba Revolt. Such remains include ritual baths and stone vessels which were used by the Jewish population in accordance with strict observance of purity laws, underground hiding complexes used at the time of the Bar-Kokhba Revolt and a rich repertoire of pottery from that period.

The site joins other sites in southeastern Samaria in which archaeological remains were found, indicating Jewish settlement from the latter part of the  Second Temple period. These sites belonged to the Jewish settlement which existed in the Toparchy of Acraba – the northern region, which was annexed to Judea during the Hasmonaean period and was inhabited by Jews until the Bar Kokhba Revolt. Findings from the exploration of Khirbet Kulâsôn are presented in the wider historical, geographical and archaeological framework. 

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