Ancient runoff harvesting agriculture in the arid Beer Sheva Valley, Israel: An interdisciplinary study

Abstract

Between 2004 and 2008, a wealth of ancient agriculture-related finds was uncovered during a survey throughout the loess plains of the Beer Sheva Valley region, in the arid northern Negev, Israel. The survey was conducted under the framework of an archeological study, aimed at assessing the similarities and dissimilarities of the valley’s ancient agricultural systems to those of the Negev Highlands to the south and of the Judean Lowlands and Southern Hebron Mountains to the north. Data collection from selected sites included detailed mapping of settlements and their hinterlands. Ancient runoff farming systems, comprised of relatively uniform stone terraces transecting the wadis (ephemeral stream channels), and other agriculture-related structures, such as tuleilat el anab (spatially patterned stone mounds erected on hillslopes), were revealed throughout the region. Other archeological finds included a variety of structures, including livestock pens, square watchtowers, rock-cut water cisterns, and others. This study indicates that like the agricultural systems in the neighboring southern and northern regions, the systematic terracing of wadis across the Beer Sheva Valley region was affiliated with the monastic settlement system, which was centrally managed by the church in the service of the Byzantine Empire. The significance of this settlement system stems from its highly capable central organization, aiming to achieve geo-political control of space. Despite peaking in the mid-6th century CE, this system persisted throughout the Early Islamic period, until the mid-8th century CE. Results of this study contradict the conclusions of previous studies, which negated the viability of ancient runoff farming across the loess plains of the Beer Sheva Valley region. Insights of this research highlight the need for interdisciplinary studies when assessing the interactions between human populations and the natural environment in ancient times.

Ancient to recent-past runoff harvesting agriculture in the hyper-arid Arava Valley: OSL dating and insights

“…These terraces, characterized by multilayer staircase-shaped constructions that strengthen the structure and allow excess water to gradually cascade down (Stavi et al, 2018b, 2019), have been predominantly dated to the Byzantine and Early Islamic periods (e.g. Ashkenazi, 2007, 2013; Avni et al, 2013; Bruins, 2012; Evenari et al, 1971; Haiman, 2012; Haiman et al, 2020). The terraces in our current study are similar to the simple, less studied terrace type, which has been found across the Negev (Evenari et al, 1958; Kedar, 1967; Lender, 1990; Rosen, 1994) and also documented in Syria (Oweis et al, 2012).…”

“…Runoff harvesting agricultural systems were widespread in the southern Levant starting in the 4th century CE (Fuks et al, 2016), peaking during the Byzantine period (324–638 CE: Avni et al, 2013; Evenari et al, 1971; Mayerson, 1985), and lasting until the Umayyad period (638–750 CE, also named Early Islamic period: Haiman, 2012; Haiman et al, 2020). Such ancient runoff harvesting systems are prevalent in modern-day eastern Jordan (Beckers et al, 2013), north-western Egypt (Vetter et al, 2014), and southern Israel (Haiman et al, 2020). In Israel, this adaptation strategy was mostly widespread in the semi-arid and arid regions, prevailing between the Judean Lowlands and Southern Hebron Mountain in the north (Dayan, 2015; Taxel, 2008), and the Negev Highlands (Avni et al, 2013) and Negev Mountains to the south (Haiman, 2012).…”

Ftir Bone Characterization and Radiocarbon Dating: Timing the Abandonment of Byzantine Pigeon Towers in the Negev Desert, Israel

“…Three of these pigeon towers (Sa'adon Building B, Shivta Buildings 2 and 6) are located within the hinterland of the 5th-6th century villages of Sa'adon and Shivta. Two more pigeon towers, Be'er Sheva Zoological Garden and Rova Noy are related to Byzantine farms around the Byzantine site of Be'er Sheva (Gil'ad and Fabian 2008;Haiman et al 2020). Findings in all pigeon towers include pigeon bones, and in Shivta Building 6 and Sa'adon Building B, rich dung layers with plant remains, eggshells and pigeon droppings were also recovered on top of the floors.…”

Integrating Archaeological Data in Multidisciplinary Environmental Studies—Methodological Notes from High-Resolution Mapping of Ancient Features in Southern Israel

“…The mapping was conducted with a GPS, which enabled us not only to mark the precise location of the remains but also to sketch them. The data were loaded into a geographic information system as a basis for continuing multidisciplinary environmental research including geomorphology and hydrology [6][7][8][9][10][11][12].…”

“…However, the previous study did not consider the remains of ancient runoff agriculture that were scattered throughout the region and that are known from the research. A multidisciplinary reexamination of the agricultural systems in the area revealed that this agriculture is indeed prevalent throughout the region, but only in terraced wadis or on the periphery in natural wadi channels and not in the loess plains themselves [10].…”