A first-century BCE chalk-vessel assemblage from Har Ḥoma, Jerusalem, and the beginning of the chalk-vessel industry

Abstract

A unique assemblage of chalk vessels was unearthed in excavations at Har Ḥoma, five kilometers south of the Old City of Jerusalem. The assemblage, distinguished by the peculiar typology of its vessels, was found in a distinct and stratified fill containing pottery dating to the second half of the first century BCE, and it may be one of the earliest chalk-vessel assemblages uncovered to date. This paper presents a catalogue of the Har Ḥoma assemblage, followed by a brief overview of comparative early assemblages from sites in Jerusalem and Jericho, and a discussion of the archaeological and historical significance of the Har Ḥoma assemblage for the history and development of chalk vessels in the late Second Temple period.