At Tel Hatzor, archaeologists have uncovered no fewer than 21 layers of settlement from the 3rd millennium BCE to 732 BCE, when the Israelite city that stood here – whose 10th-century-BCE gate may have been built by Solomon – was destroyed by the Assyrians. In times of siege, the supply of water was ensured by an extraordinary underground system whose 40m-deep shaft is now accessible via a spiral staircase. Tel Hatzor has been a Unesco World Heritage site since 2005.
Excavations, staffed by volunteers from around the world, continue every summer. In 2016 the foot of a stone statue of an Egyptian official (2nd millennium BCE) was found. The entry ticket is valid for the archaeological museum at nearby Ayalet HaShachar, open from 9am to 1pm on Friday and Saturday.
