Strategies of Animal Exploitation in Late Iron Age IIA Ḥorvat Tevet (the Jezreel Valley) Reveal Patterns of Royal Economy in Early Monarchic Israel

Abra Spiciarich*, Omer Sergi, Karen Covello-Paran, Yoav Tsur, Hannes Bezzel, Lidar Sapir-Hen

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

4 Scopus citations

Abstract

Faunal remains from Ḥorvat Tevet, a site located in the rural hinterlands of the Jezreel Valley, reveal patterns of a complex redistributive apparatus during the Late Iron IIA. This paper assesses a large assemblage of animal bones within inter- and intra-site comparative analyses. Inter-site comparisons to contemporary sites in the northern valleys of Israel demonstrate that the agricultural production of grain and animal by-products at Ḥorvat Tevet is unprecedented and went far beyond the site’s local needs. Further, an intra-site comparison reveals a hierarchical distinction in the consumption patterns between elites and the labour force. These results further reinforce the conclusion that the late Iron IIA Ḥorvat Tevet was an administrative centre of a royal Israelite estate in the Jezreel Valley.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)241-261
Number of pages21
JournalPalestine Exploration Quarterly
Volume156
Issue number3
DOIs
StateE-pub ahead of print - 21 Mar 2023

Funding

FundersFunder number
Gerda Henkel FoundationAZ 20/F/19

    Keywords

    • Agricultural Labour
    • Animal Economy
    • Consumer-Producers
    • Iron Age II
    • Jezreel Valley
    • Monarchic Israel
    • Social Hierarchy
    • Zooarchaeology

    Fingerprint

    Dive into the research topics of 'Strategies of Animal Exploitation in Late Iron Age IIA Ḥorvat Tevet (the Jezreel Valley) Reveal Patterns of Royal Economy in Early Monarchic Israel'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

    Cite this