The Archaeological Survey of Israel
The Archaeological Survey of Israel is one of the largest scientific projects ever undertaken in the country. The Association for the Archaeological Survey of Israel was established at the encouragement of the first Israeli Prime Minister, David Ben-Gurion, who believed it was necessary for Israelis to know their country's history, as part of their connection to it. The Land of Israel, with one of the highest densities of archaeological sites in the world, is also the most surveyed country in the world. Approximately two-thirds of its area has been meticulously examined – one meter at a time (!) – in order to discover archaeological sites and through them rewrite the story of the cultures that have passed through Israel from the dawn of history to the present.
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| Photo Credit: Roni Avidov, IAA |
The existing knowledge on the history of Israel – from the Stone Age to the twentieth century – is based primarily on data derived from surveys. Since the early 1960s scores of archaeologists, some of whom were the most prominent in the country, have embarked on the meticulous and Sisyphean task of surveying the terrain, while documenting every architectural remain, potsherd or flint item. The collection of the data, their classification and chronology provide researchers who understand them a vast amount of information regarding the region's past. Roughly two-thirds of Israel’s area has been surveyed in which tens of thousands of archaeological sites were discovered and documented. The archaeological survey is still being performed today as part of the ongoing activities undertaken by the Israel Antiquities Authority.
According to Dr. Ofer Sion, head of the Israel Antiquities Authority Department of Surveys, “To someone looking in from the outside the picture may seem a bit bizarre: four people walking side by side at equal intervals looking at the ground and picking up pottery shreds. One must understand that this is how we gather valuable data about the history of a place, which when connected together, can form a complete picture. Sometimes the surveyors rappel into ancient caves or even scuba dive in the sea to gather information. Without the survey we would know nothing about the history of the country. Who would know about the famous site at Gamla, the monastic sites, the ancient life in the desert or the hiding refuges and the story of the zealots and rebels in Judean Desert caves?”
According to Dr. Ofer Sion, head of the Israel Antiquities Authority Department of Surveys, “To someone looking in from the outside the picture may seem a bit bizarre: four people walking side by side at equal intervals looking at the ground and picking up pottery shreds. One must understand that this is how we gather valuable data about the history of a place, which when connected together, can form a complete picture. Sometimes the surveyors rappel into ancient caves or even scuba dive in the sea to gather information. Without the survey we would know nothing about the history of the country. Who would know about the famous site at Gamla, the monastic sites, the ancient life in the desert or the hiding refuges and the story of the zealots and rebels in Judean Desert caves?”
The sites documented in the Archaeological Survey of Israel are published on the website where they are displayed in survey squares of 100 sq km (10 × 10 km).
