Tel Arad

Tel Arad

תל ערד تل عراد
Aerial view of the Israelite fortress
Shown within Israel
Alternative name	Tell 'Arad
Location	Israel
Region	Negev
Coordinates	31°16′52″N 35°7′34″E / 31.28111°N 35.12611°E / 31.28111; 35.12611
Site notes
Archaeologists	Yohanan Aharoni, Ruth Amiran
Public access	National Park

Tel Arad (Hebrew: תל ערד) or Tell 'Arad (Arabic: تل عراد, romanized: Tall ʿArād) is an archaeological tell, or mound, located west of the Dead Sea, about 10 kilometres (6 miles) west of the modern Israeli city of Arad in an area surrounded by mountain ridges which is known as the Arad Plain. The Tel overlooks an important crossroads from the Early Bronze Age to the present day. During the Iron Age, Arad defended the main road that went from Jerusalem, Hebron, the Arad Valley towards the ruins of Horvat Uza and the Dead Sea.

A total of 18 excavation seasons took place, 14 of them focused on the Early Bronze Age city and were led by Ruth Amiran. The first expedition operated there between 1962-1966, and the second between 1971-1980. The excavations at the Citadel Mound were mostly conducted by Yochanan Aharoni. Today the site is declared a national park operated by the Israel Nature and Parks Authority.

According to Yohanan Aharoni and other scholars, Tel Arad is identified with the biblical Arad, which is mentioned as a strong Canaanite city in the eastern Negev, but it is not clear whether it was conquered by the Twelve Tribes of Israel (Book of Numbers, chapter 14, verses 24-25; 21 1; 33 M; Book of Joshua, Chapter 12, Verse 14; Book of Judges, Chapter 1, Verse 17; Book of Chronicles 1, Chapter 8, Verse 15). Arad, apparently, in the list of cities of the Negev of Judah, by the way, which can letters - "Adar" instead of "Arad" (Book of Joshua, chapter 15, verse 21).

The lower Canaanite settlement and the upper Israelite citadel are now part of the Tel Arad National Park, which has begun projects to restore the walls of the upper and lower sites.