No. 27

APHEK-ANTIPATRIS II:
THE REMAINS ON THE ACROPOLIS
THE MOSHE KOCHAVI AND PIRHIYA BECK EXCAVATIONS

Y. Gadot and E. Yadin

With contributions by:
Gabriella Bachi, David Ben-Shlomo, Elisabetta Boaretto, Eyal Bozaglo, Assaf Yasur-Landau,
Rafael Frankel, Ayelet Gilboa, Yuval Goren, Marta Guzowska, Liora Kolska Horwitz,
Mordechai E. Kislev, Nir Lalkin, Omri Lernau, Nili Liphschitz, Yael Mahler-Slasky, Mario A.S. Martin,
Henk K. Mienis, Nadav Na'aman, Ilan Sharon, Sariel Shalev, Itamar Singer, Na'ama Yahalom-Mack

Tel Aviv 2009

In 1972, and for twelve seasons thereafter, the late Moshe Kochavi directed the excavation of Tel Aphek-
Antipatris together with the late Pirhiya Beck who was responsible for pottery registration and analysis.
To our great regret and deep sorrow neither lived to see the final publication of the fruits of their labours.
However, in his last year Moshe participated actively in the preparation of this volume, writing the first
and closing chapters and carefully checking the others. Throughout his distinguished academic career
‘Kuchbi’ trained a generation of young archaeologists who followed his scholarly approach of combining
field archaeology with historico-geographic research. This was put into practice as part of the Aphek
research project which included a regional archaeological survey and the excavation of nearby >Izbet
êarta. We were privileged to benefit from his guidance and are grateful for his unfailing patience and
willingness to share his knowledge and experience with us at all times. A special vote of appreciation
goes to the late Professor Pirhiya Beck who was an inspiration to her colleagues and students. Her
attitude to the study of ancient pottery laid the foundation for our research into the ceramic material
retrieved from the excavations.
The field project was set up under the aegis of the Sonia and Marco Nadler Institute of Archaeology
of Tel Aviv University as an educational project combining studies through lectures and fieldwork. Over
the years the Tel Aviv University team was joined by a number of foreign academic institutions each of
which participated for different lengths of time, sharing the work-load and expenses. Our first partners
were the New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary (1972-1976) followed by Baylor University
(1974-1976) and Allegheny College (1975-1982). Cornell University joined the consortium in 1978 as
did Rice University, working with us until 1985 and 1982 respectively.
During all the years of work, the Municipality of Petach Tikvah provided unflagging support both
financially and practically. Their cooperation is much appreciated.
We would like to express our appreciation to the Directors of the Sonia and Marco Nadler Institute
of Archaeology of Tel Aviv University for making available the services of the institute’s laboratories
and staff which provided administrative and technical support. Rachel Stoller and Pnina Rodan were in
charge of general administration and all matters connected with the volunteers while Esther Yadin served
as Expedition Coordinator throughout. Pottery restoration was carried out by Rachel Pelta, Mira Barak,
Nili Cohen and Yona Shapira. Finds were drawn by Naomi Schechter, Sheila Varon, Ada Peri and Rodica
Penchas. Netta Halperin cleaned and prepared the metal objects for analysis. Photographs were taken
in the field as well as in the studio by Avraham Hai, Maya and Moshe Weinberg. Maps and plans were
prepared by Judith Dekel and Yura Smertenko. Our thanks to all of them.
The publication of Aphek’s acropolis was accomplished with a generous grant from the Shelby White–
Leon Levy Program for Archaeological Publications. Additionally, the Mediterranean Archaeological Trust/
Ashmolean Museum provided a supplementary grant for its completion. We are greatly indebted to them
for making it possible. We also thank the incumbent director of the Sonia and Marco Nadler Institute and
the members of the Editorial Board for sponsoring this publication and for their sharp eyes in critically
examining the galley proofs.

This report is based on the field diaries of the teams who excavated the areas dealt with here but mainly
on a preliminary report completed by Zvi Gal. We are indebted to all of them for their contribution.
We would like to express our appreciation to the technical staff of the Institute of Archaeology who
gave generously of their time and expertise, especially Ami Brauner who refined the maps and plans for
publication, Yulia Gottlieb who arranged and digitalized all the finds as plates, and Pavel Shrago who
scanned and prepared the photographs for publication. We thank them for their patience.
Many scholars, affiliated either with Tel Aviv University or other prestigious academic institutions,
contributed to this volume. We thank them for their knowledgeable study of the finds and cooperation
during the process of compiling this book.
The quality of a book as complex as this is heavily dependent on the professional skills of its
editors. Theirs is also the unenviable task of nagging, bullying and encouraging the authors and welding
the sometimes very different styles into a coherent whole. We gratefully acknowledge the hard work
and expertise of Eliot Braun who edited the original manuscript and ‘licked it into shape’ for language
and accuracy. The final product is the work of Shirley Gassner who meticulously completed the editing
process and layout of this publication. We owe her special thanks for her constructive comments and
unflagging efforts to bring this report to its present scientific and artistic form.

Yuval Gadot and Esther Yadin
Tel Aviv 2009

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