ח'ירבת אל־עומדאן: אתר מהתקופה הכלקוליתית (התרבות הע'סולית) בבית שמש

In May 2012, a small salvage excavation was conducted near Khirbat el-‘Umdan (map ref. 197739–802/627682–731; Fig. 1), prior to the construction of a baseball field at the site. The site is located in a wide valley that drains into Naḥal Yish‘i, about one kilometer south of Tel Bet Shemesh, in the lower Judean Shephelah (208.00 m above sea level; Fig. 2). Eight squares (4 × 4 m; 128 sq m) were opened, exposing stone floors bearing remains from the Late Chalcolithic period. A straight retaining wall (W10; length 21 m; Plan 1; Fig. 3) was discovered in the eastern part of the excavation. It was built across the valley from a row of stones carelessly placed on the soft limestone (qirṭon) bedrock. West of the wall, a surface of small fieldstones (L110) was exposed, and to its east was a layer of brown alluvial soil (L109). Both loci (L109, L110) were interspersed with a small number of potsherds dating from the Late Chalcolithic and Hellenistic periods. The scarce finds near the wall were not sufficient to determine its date. Northwest of the wall were floor segments (L120, L112–114, L102–104; Plan 1; Figs. 4, 5) made of small fieldstones, potsherds and packed gray earth. Above these floors was a rich assemblage of finds dating exclusively from the Late Chalcolithic period. A pit (L118; Fig. 6) dug into the ground contained flint items, stone artifacts and hundreds of potsherds dating from the Late Chalcolithic period. As no walls were uncovered above the floors, it seems that the dwellings at the site were built of perishable materials, such as reeds, mud bricks or animal skin. The rich finds from the excavation comprise pottery vessels, such as V-shaped bowls, large basins, store jars, holemouths, churns and cornets, and a fragment of a zoomorphic figurine (see Brink and Cohen-Weinberger, this volume); groundstone vessels made of local limestone and basalt (see Vered, this volume); flint tools, including many sickle blades (see Vered, this volume); and a cash of three copper axes (L103) and a copper-alloy macehead (see Vassal, Brink and Ben Yosef, this volume). Also found were some 30 burned olive stones and skeletal remains of sheep, goats, cattle and pigs (see Agha, this volume), and Melanopsis praemorsa, which indicates the presence of sweet water. The rich assemblage from the excavation allows for some conclusions to be drawn, despite its limited scope. It seems that the settlement at the site existed for a short period in the first phase of the Late Cha