Rebbo or Horvat Rebbo (, lit. "Rebbo ruins"), alternative spellings: Robbo, Ribbo; in

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

Khurbet Rubba (lit. "Rubba ruins"), is an ancient site in

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

, mentioned by

Eusebius Eusebius of Caesarea (30 May AD 339), also known as Eusebius Pamphilius, was a historian of Christianity, exegete, and Christian polemicist from the Roman province of Syria Palaestina. In about AD 314 he became the bishop of Caesarea Maritima. ...

in his ''

Onomasticon Onomasticon may refer to: *Onomasticon (Eusebius) *Onomasticon of Amenope *Onomasticon of Joan Coromines *Onomasticon of Julius Pollux Julius Pollux (, ''Ioulios Polydeukes''; fl. 2nd century) was a Greeks, Greek scholar and rhetorician from Naucr ...

'' as possibly referring to a site by a similar name in the

Book of Joshua The Book of Joshua is the sixth book in the Hebrew Bible and the Old Testament, and is the first book of the Deuteronomistic history, the story of Israel from the conquest of Canaan to the Babylonian captivity, Babylonian exile. It tells of the ...

. The site, which is now a ruin, sits on a hill above sea level, in the

Shephelah The Shephelah () or Shfela (), or the Judaean Foothills (), is a transitional region of soft-sloping rolling hills in south-central Israel stretching over between the Judaean Mountains and the Coastal Plain. The different use of the term "Jud ...

region, and is now part of the Adullam-France Park, maintained by the

Jewish National Fund The Jewish National Fund (JNF; , ''Keren Kayemet LeYisrael''; previously , ''Ha Fund HaLeumi'') is a non-profit organizationProfessor Alon Tal, The Mitrani Department of Desert Ecology, The Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben Gurion ...

(KKL). It lies about 1.5 km. to the west of Aderet as the crow flies, and about northeast of

Beit Guvrin National Park Beit Guvrin-Maresha National Park is a national park in central Israel, containing a large network of caves recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. The national park includes the remains of the historical towns of Maresha, one of the impor ...

. The site is quite extensive and contains tunnels believed to have been in use during the

Bar Kokhba revolt The Bar Kokhba revolt (132–136 AD) was a major uprising by the Jews of Judaea (Roman province), Judaea against the Roman Empire, marking the final and most devastating of the Jewish–Roman wars. Led by Simon bar Kokhba, the rebels succeeded ...

. Tombs from the

Second Temple period The Second Temple period or post-exilic period in Jewish history denotes the approximately 600 years (516 BCE – 70 CE) during which the Second Temple stood in the city of Jerusalem. It began with the return to Zion and subsequent reconstructio ...

, agricultural features and cisterns (now covered with iron gratings) can be seen on the site. Many lentisk mastic trees (''Pistacia lentiscus'') and buckthorns (''Rhamnus lycioides'') cover the site.

In ancient sources

(4th century) writes in his ''

'' that in his day it was a village, called in and situated "in the territory of

Eleutheropolis Bayt Jibrin or Beit Jibrin ( lit. 'House of the Powerful') was an Arab village in the Hebron Subdistrict of British Mandatory Palestine, in what is today the State of Israel, which was depopulated during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. It was ...

(Beit Gubrin) to the east." Some have cast doubt on V.L. Trumper's view in ''Historical Sites in Central Palestine'' (1918) that Rebbo, located 3 west of

Adullam Adullam (, ) is an ancient ruin once numbered among the thirty-six cities of Canaan whose kings "Joshua and the children of Israel smote" (Joshua 12:7–24). After that, it fell as an inheritance to the tribe of Judah and was included in the nort ...

, is to be recognised in the name mentioned in the list of

Thutmose III Thutmose III (variously also spelt Tuthmosis or Thothmes), sometimes called Thutmose the Great, (1479–1425 BC) was the fifth pharaoh of the 18th Dynasty of Egypt. He is regarded as one of the greatest warriors, military commanders, and milita ...

, and which place is also called / in the el-Amarna tablets. According to these sources, the king of Jerusalem complained before Pharaoh that certain people from

Gezer Gezer, or Tel Gezer (), in – Tell Jezar or Tell el-Jezari is an archaeological site in the foothills of the Judaean Mountains at the border of the Shfela region roughly midway between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. It is now an List of national parks ...

, from Gath and

Keilah Keilah () was a city in the lowlands of the Kingdom of Judah. It is now a ruin known as Khirbet Qeyla near the modern village of Qila, Hebron, east of Bayt Jibrin and about west of Kharas.. History Late Bronze The earliest historical record ...

had conspired together and forcibly taken away lands belonging to . The site's current name was fixed by the

Government Naming Committee Government Naming Committee (, sometimes referred as National Naming Committee or Government Names Committee) is a public committee appointed by the Government of Israel, which deals with the designation of names for communities and other points ...

in Israel.

Archaeological surveys

Victor Guérin (1863)

French explorer,

Victor Guérin Victor Guérin (; 15 September 1821 – 21 September 1890) was a French people, French intellectual, explorer and amateur archaeologist. He published books describing the geography, archeology and history of the areas he explored, which included ...

, visited the site, which he called ''Khirbet Rebba'', in 1863, and wrote of his impressions of the site: "The ruins are fairly large and cover the summit and slopes of a hill. Many

cisterns A cistern (; , ; ) is a waterproof receptacle for holding liquids, usually water. Cisterns are often built to catch and store rainwater. To prevent leakage, the interior of the cistern is often lined with hydraulic plaster. Cisterns are disti ...

and vaults embedded in the rock attest to its great antiquity. The houses, of very small dimensions, were for the most part constructed of medium-sized and generally well squared stones; they litter the ground everywhere with their debris. An edifice, also overthrown from top to bottom, seems to have been a church, which proves that, in the

Christian era The terms (AD) and before Christ (BC) are used when designating years in the Gregorian and Julian calendars. The term is Medieval Latin and means "in the year of the Lord" but is often presented using "our Lord" instead of "the Lord", tak ...

, this town was still inhabited. Six sections of mutilated columns lie in this place. I also notice, on a beautiful rectangular block, two carved Greek crosses."

Conder and Kitchener (1878)

The ruin appears in Conder and Kitchener's 1878 Survey of Palestine map under the name ''Khurbet Rubba''. They noted under "Rabba" that it was a "city of Judah, mentioned with Kirjath Jearim (Joshua XV. 60). In the ''Onomasticon'' a place called Rebbo is mentioned as east of

, which might be the same. A good-sized ruin named ''Rubba'' is found in the low hills south of the valley of Elah, north-east of

Bayt Jibrin Bayt Jibrin or Beit Jibrin ( lit. 'House of the Powerful') was an Arab village in the Hebron Subdistrict of British Mandatory Palestine, in what is today the State of Israel, which was depopulated during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. It was ...

, which would be in a suitable position for the early Christian site." They found there "Caves,

cistern A cistern (; , ; ) is a waterproof receptacle for holding liquids, usually water. Cisterns are often built to catch and store rainwater. To prevent leakage, the interior of the cistern is often lined with hydraulic plaster. Cisterns are disti ...

s, and heaps of stones, ruined walls, bases of pillars and shafts much worn, two

lintel A lintel or lintol is a type of beam (a horizontal structural element) that spans openings such as portals, doors, windows and fireplaces. It can be a decorative architectural element, or a combined ornamented/structural item. In the case ...

stones with crosses, both measuring about 7 feet by 2½ feet."

Aapeli Saarisalo (pre-1931)

The site was surveyed by Finnish archaeologist in the early 20th century, who concluded that the village was inhabited as late as the

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman E ...

and Early Arab periods.Saarisolo, A. (1931), p. 16

Gallery

File:Remnant of old wall, Rebbo.jpg, Wall at ''Khirbat Rubba'' (Rebbo) File:Razed structures at Rebbo Ruin.jpg, Stone structures at Rebbo File:General view of Tell Rebbo from the dell.jpg, Dell on lower east side of Horvat Rebbo/Khurbet Rubba File:General view of ruins.jpg, Ruins at ''Khirbat Rubba'' File:General view of ruins - 2.jpg, General view of Horvat Rebbo/Khurbet Rubba File:Aderet as seen from the Rebbo Ruin.jpg, Moshav Aderet seen in the distance from Horvat Rebbo/Khurbet RubbaKhurbet Rubba File:View looking southward from Rebbo Ruin.jpg, General view looking south of Rebbo File:Broken mouth of well, Khirbat Rubba (Rebbo).jpg, Broken mouth of well at Rebbo File:Broken Mouth of well at Rebbo.jpg, Broken mouth of well, now sealed File:Cave, Rebbo.jpg, Entrance to cave File:Old wall at Rebbo Ruin.jpg, Remnant of old wall at ''Khirbat Rubba'' File:Open pit at Rebbo (Kh. Rubba).jpg, Pit lined with hewn stones at Rebbo File:Open pit at Rebbo Ruin.jpg, Gaping hole of pit (cavern) at Rebbo File:Pit with grating at Rebbo.jpg, Grating covering pit at Rebbo File:Remains of stone column at Rebbo Ruin.jpg, Column stump at Rebbo File:Wine press at Rebbo Ruin.jpg, Wine press carved in rock at Rebbo File:Slab of stone at Tell Rebbo.jpg, Large slab of stone (wine press?) at Rebbo

Notes

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * * * *

External links

*Survey of Western Palestine, Map 21:
IAAWikimedia commonsArchaeological Survey at Tel Rebbo (2018)
by Eitan Klein, Boaz Zissu, and Amir Ganor (Hebrew) {{Authority control Ancient sites in Israel Former populated places in Israel Tells (archaeology) Hebrew Bible cities Archaeological sites in Israel