Ancient Tomb Complex

The larger of the Iron Age tombs housed the remains studied in this investigation. The schematic below of the Ancient tomb complex illustrates a main entrance chamber where bodies were prepared for burial. Off the main chamber are a series of smaller rooms, with two to three burial benches. Under one burial bench in each room is an opening to a repository, where bones were placed when the bench was needed for the next interrment.

The remains used for the biocultural model of life at St. Stephen's were exhumed from the repository between rooms 6 and 8.

Click on the image to move into the tomb complex

** This schematic was adapted from Barkay and Kloner's illustration in Biblical Archaeology Review (March/April,1986, p. 30). It is published in Sheridan (1999).