Metzad Mahmal is the ruins of a stronghold located on the edge of the northern cliff of the

Ramon Crater Makhtesh Ramon (; ''lit.'' Ramon Crater/Makhtesh; ; ''lit.'' The Ruman Wadi) is a geological feature of Israel's Negev desert. Located some 85 km south of Beersheba, the landform is the world's largest "erosion cirque" (steephead valley ...

, at the top end of Ma'ale Mahmal (מעלה מחמל, "Mahmal Ascent") and is part of the

Incense Route The incense trade route was an ancient network of major land and sea trading routes linking the Mediterranean world with eastern and southern sources of incense, spices and other luxury goods, stretching from Mediterranean ports across the Levan ...

that runs between

Petra Petra (; "Rock"), originally known to its inhabitants as Raqmu (Nabataean Aramaic, Nabataean: or , *''Raqēmō''), is an ancient city and archaeological site in southern Jordan. Famous for its rock-cut architecture and water conduit systems, P ...

and

Avdat Avdat or Ovdat (), and Abdah or Abde (), are the modern names of an archaeological site corresponding to the ancient Nabataean, Roman and Byzantine settlement of Oboda (''tabula Peutingeriana''; Stephanus Byzantinus) or Eboda (Ptolemaeus 5:16, 4 ...

Geography

Ma'ale Mahmal is the steep section, where the Incense Route overcomes the main natural obstacle in its path, the northern cliff of Ramon Crater. The ascent is a narrow path, about 200 meters long, that goes up to the top of the cliff. This climb is one of the most difficult sections of the Incense Route, as its average width is one meter, and it requires walking in a row of both people and pack animals. Most probably, the fundamental work of clearing the path and adapting it to regular caravan traffic was done by the Romans, who improved the ancient Nabatean route.

Site research

The site was first surveyed in 1937 by George Kirk, who was also the first to survey Ma'ale Machmel. In 1960, the site was surveyed by Beno Rothenberg and Mordechai Gichon. In 1965, a test excavation was conducted at the site by an archaeologist of the Negev District of the Antiquities Authority, Rudolf Cohen, as part of a survey of the Incense Route between Shaar Ramon and Avdat. In December 1982, a

rescue excavation Rescue archaeology, sometimes called commercial archaeology, preventive archaeology, salvage archaeology, contract archaeology, developer-funded archaeology, or compliance archaeology, is state-sanctioned, archaeological survey and excavation ca ...

was conducted at the site, under the direction of Cohen. In May 2004, another rescue excavation was conducted at the site on behalf of the

Israel Antiquities Authority The Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA, ; , before 1990, the Israel Department of Antiquities) is an independent Israeli governmental authority responsible for enforcing the 1978 Law of Antiquities. The IAA regulates excavation and conservatio ...

. In this excavation, the outer western and northern walls of the stronghold were cleaned, and another building on the site damaged by

archaeological looting Archaeological looting is the illicit removal of artifacts from an archaeological site. Such looting is the major source of artifacts for the antiquities trade#Illicit trade, antiquities market. Looting typically involves either the illegal expor ...

was examined. Additional buildings were also excavated to the north and west of the site.

Findings

A building was discovered at the site that previously included two floors, measuring 7 meters by 6.5 meters and containing two rooms. The first and older floor is dated based on the ceramics to the first century AD, and the later one is dated based on late

Nabatean The Nabataeans or Nabateans (; Nabataean Aramaic: , , vocalized as ) were an ancient Arab people who inhabited northern Arabia and the southern Levant. Their settlements—most prominently the assumed capital city of Raqmu (present-day Petra ...

ceramics and two coins of Roman emperor

Gallienus Publius Licinius Egnatius Gallienus (; – September 268) was Roman emperor with his father Valerian from 253 to 260 and alone from 260 to 268. He ruled during the Crisis of the Third Century that nearly caused the collapse of the empire. He ...

to the third century AD. About 500 meters north of the stronghold is a built water pool, measuring 8 meters by 4.8 meters, whose capacity probably exceeded 150 cubic meters. It was covered by a stone ceiling supported by arches, and was filled by a drainage canal, which descends to it from the northeast.

References

External links

The Incense Route
by

Israel Nature and Parks Authority The Israel Nature and Parks Authority (, ; ) is an Israeli government organization that manages nature reserves and national parks in Israel, the Golan Heights and parts of the West Bank. The organization was founded in April 1998, merging two o ...

{{authority control Nabataean sites in Israel Nabataean architecture World Heritage Sites in Israel National parks of Israel Ancient sites in Israel Ramat Negev Regional Council Caravanserais in Israel Protected areas of Southern District (Israel) Buildings and structures in Southern District (Israel)