Tel 'Eton is located in the trough valley, on the south-eastern part of the Judean Shephalah, just below the Hebron hills. The site is located in the midst of a large open area, settled by only a few small settlements (moshavim), and where ancient tells and Khirbets, hidden between fields and orchards, dot the landscape. Among the many well-preserved archaeological sites in this area, Tel 'Eton is prominent.
The site covers about 15 acres large, and is located some 11 km east-southeast of Tel Lachish (2 km to the south of Moshav Shekef).
The ancient city is situated near an important junction between the north-south road that meandered along the trough valley connecting the Beersheba valley and the Ayalon valley, and the east-west road that connected the coastal plain and the Shephelah with Hebron, and which passed along wadi Adoraim. The site's location near large valleys also secured
its proximity to fertile soils, increasing its economic importance.
The site covers about 15 acres large, and is located some 11 km east-southeast of Tel Lachish (2 km to the south of Moshav Shekef).
The ancient city is situated near an important junction between the north-south road that meandered along the trough valley connecting the Beersheba valley and the Ayalon valley, and the east-west road that connected the coastal plain and the Shephelah with Hebron, and which passed along wadi Adoraim. The site's location near large valleys also secured
its proximity to fertile soils, increasing its economic importance.
Site identification
The site is identified by most scholars with Biblical 'Eglon. The city is mentioned in the Bible in two contexts.
1) in Judah's list of cities (Joshua 15: 39).
2) In the story of the conquest. In this story the city is mentioned as the home of one of the kings of the south (Joshua 10), and in the description of the war, Eglon is placed between Lachish and Hebron:
34 Then Joshua and all Israel with him moved on from Lachish to Eglon; they took up positions against it and attacked it. 35 They captured it that same day and put it to the sword and totally destroyed everyone in it, just as they had done to Lachish. 36 Then Joshua and all Israel with him went up from Eglon to Hebron and attacked it.
The description in the book of Joshua locates Eglon between Lachish and Hebron, and this is the main reason for the identification of the city at Tel 'Eton, which is located on the road between those cities (it appears that wadi Adoraim served as the main route between those cities). Although the identification of Eglon at Tel 'Eton is common, it is not certain. The finds unearthed so far at the site do not contribute to this issue, but we hope that future finds will allow us to prove or refute this identification.
Surrounding the tel is a very large necropolis (some of the tombs are very well executed, and includes gables, etc.), most of which were robbed during the last several decades. The wide-scale robbery led, some 40 years ago, to a few salvage excavations that were carried out at the cemetery by T. Dothan, D. Ussishkin, G. Edelstein, S. Aurant, V. Tzaferis and O. Hass. Worth mentioning among the tombs are a unique Iron Age I tomb in which beautiful bichrome Philistine pottery was unearthed, and an Iron II tomb on whose walls were lion-like engravings.
Small scale excavations on the tel were carried out in the mid 1970's by theLachish expedition, headed by Prof. D. Ussishkin. A group of archaeologists from the Lachish expedition, led by E. Ayalon and R. Bar nathan, conducted salvage excavations not far from the top of the tel, where a robbe trench had been cut into the mound. The excavations lasted a few days, and four squares were opened. Despite the shallowness (and the limited extent) of the excavations, two well-preserved Iron II strata were identified.
Small scale excavations on the tel were carried out in the mid 1970's by theLachish expedition, headed by Prof. D. Ussishkin. A group of archaeologists from the Lachish expedition, led by E. Ayalon and R. Bar nathan, conducted salvage excavations not far from the top of the tel, where a robbe trench had been cut into the mound. The excavations lasted a few days, and four squares were opened. Despite the shallowness (and the limited extent) of the excavations, two well-preserved Iron II strata were identified.
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