location

The site was built on a spur sloping westward in the south of the Judean Plain, and overlooks the Hebron Mountains in the east, the Judean Plain in the south and north, and the coastal plain and Ashkelon in the west. To the northeast of the site are Tel Beit Mirsim and Tel Eton

history

. During the Iron Age, an array of towers and fortresses were built in the Kingdom of Judah that served as contact points, alerts and signals for the transmission of messages and field intelligence. The tower that was uncovered in the excavation was part of this system, and it connected the large cities in the vicinity that were located in Tel Beit Marsim, Tel Aiton and Tel Lachish. In order to convey messages, in ancient times they used to carry smoke beacons during the day and light a fire at night. Beacons are mentioned in the Bible, or in biblical language, “Mashhat” several times

Excavations

An excavation was conducted on behalf of the Ministry of Antiquities in 2019 led by Saar Ganor

Findings

In Hurvat Moran, the remains of a rectangular tower were uncovered, dated based on the ceramic find to the 8th century BCE.