The Late 4th/3rd Century BCE Transition in the Judean Hinterland in Light of the Pottery of Khirbet Qeiyafa

Abstract

Until recently, distinguishing between Late Persian and Early Hellenistic pottery assemblages in the Shephelah and the Hill Country of Judea was imprecise and somewhat elusive. Based on new numismatic data, two phases of Stratum III at Khirbet Qeiyafa can now be securely dated to this time span. Analysis of the respective pottery assemblages allows us for the first time to propose a clear distinction between the pottery of these two periods. Accordingly, a new dating for several sites in the Shephelah and the Hill Country is suggested.

Keywords:

• Persian period
• Hellenistic period
• Ptolemaic period
• Khirbet Qeiyafa
• Shephelah