Abstract
This article addresses the relationship between metalworking and cultic space in the Bronze Age Southern Levant, tracing the earliest evidence of metallurgical activities within Southern Levantine temples to the beginning of the Middle Bronze Age. This coincides with the appearance of a series of new cultic traditions in the region, including the large-scale dedication of votive offerings in temple settings. It is demonstrated that the local production within cultic venues was not intended primarily for the production of objects to be circulated outside the temple but mainly for the manufacture of goods to be used and offered during ritual activities conducted in the cultic spaces themselves.
| Original language | American English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 194-215 |
| Number of pages | 22 |
| Journal | Tel Aviv |
| Volume | 50 |
| Issue number | 2 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 2023 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:We would like to thank the anonymous reviewers, as well as the Editorial Board of Tel Aviv, for the constructive feedback and critical comments on earlier versions of the manuscript, unquestionably improving the arguments, clarity and overall quality of the study in its final form. The research was supported by the Philip and Muriel Berman Center for Biblical Archaeology at the Institute of Archaeology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
Keywords
- Bronze Age
- Metalworking
- Southern Levant
- Temple economy
- Temples